Something to Believe
by EclipsedPlanet2
Summary: Pre-DH. AU. Draco Malfoy is accepted into the Order and stays at headquarters with Ginny. Could they become friends? Maybe something more?
1. Prisoners

Hello! This is a rewrite of a story I've written a while back titled "Clocks." I've reworked a lot of the material so I'm titling it something new, a bit more appropriate "Something to Believe." It takes place between books 6 & 7, the summer after Dumbledore's death, and is not very compatible with DH, so we'll consider it AU. Because my heart broke a tiny bit when I read the Epilogue of book 7, cementing Ginny's relationship with Harry, where I would have preferred to leave it up to my imagination (that is: Ginny ends up with Draco, hehe).

7/29/11 - update: I will be making revisions, adding in page breaks that were mysteriously removed and cleaning up grammar/spelling issues. I have been rereading this story for quite some time, and I may make changes, additions as I go! I'm hoping to have another chapter to conclude the story.

So please enjoy!

* * *

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter One: Prisoners

* * *

Ginny Weasley pressed her ear firmly to the door of her room at 12 Grimmauld Place. She could just barely make out the heated voices downstairs.

"There's no way Malfoy can stay here. We've barely just reestablished the wards on this place."

"If he can't stay here, what's he to do, eh?"

"He won't be any trouble, the poor kid came to us for help, for Merlin's sake."

"I don't trust him one bit. He shouldn't be trusted!"

"We've trusted Death Eaters before, and look what's happened there!"

"Leave Snape out of this - that was a different situation entirely - "

"DON'T YOU DARE DEFEND SNAPE!"

"Alright, Harry! But what about Malfoy?"

"What else is he supposed to do?"

"Let me talk to him. And I'll decide what to do."

She wondered if they were talking like this in front of Malfoy or if they had the decency to send him to the parlor first.

* * *

Ginny sat by the window, staring out over the quiet, warm summer evening outside. It was too muggy for the neighborhood kids to play so the only sound she could hear was the distant chirping of birds. There was a short, gentle knock on her door.

She stood up and opened the door to reveal her father, sagging slightly but smiling wide upon seeing his daughter.

"Gin bug, we're all settled downstairs. Would you like to come down for dinner?"

"Is Draco Malfoy actually here? What's happening? Did you let him stay?"

Her father laughed at her rapid-fire questions, and led her down the stairs to the kitchen, where her mother was working on getting dinner on the table. Quickly Ginny's eyes scanned the room, curious to see if Malfoy were present. He wasn't. Ron and Harry were sitting at the large oak dining table. Hermione and Tonks were helping her mum with dinner and Remus and a few of her brothers were idly talking in a corner.

"So where is he? What happened?" Ginny asked, hoping for a response.

"He's up in his room, Gin," her father answered quietly. The room grew silent and several people turned to look at Harry. Ginny's stomach twisted a little upon seeing him. The break-up was still a tender wound in her heart.

Harry said nothing, and just kept his eyes focused on the table. He was twiddling a small locket in his hands.

"Well supper is ready. I'll just take up this tray to Malfoy's room," Molly said, removing her apron and picking up a tray laden with food.

Sensing an opportunity to see Malfoy, Ginny said, "I'll take it, Mum."

Her mother shrugged off her help, saying, "I'd like to have a word with him."

Ginny watched her mum go, as the others sat down around the table while Hermione and Tonks handed out the plates. Ginny sat beside George and helped herself to potatoes. She looked around, trying to gauge everyone's reaction to the evening's proceedings. Everyone remained quiet, even the twins.

"So Ginny, seems that you will be remaining here for a bit," started Arthur, putting up a hand as she opened her mouth to protest. "This is going to be a complicated year. Most likely Hogwarts won't be opening back up in fall. We're well into August now, and McGonagall just doesn't have it all worked out. Children's safety first." Ginny rolled her eyes upon hearing 'children'.

"Well why do I have to stay here? I can just stay at the Burrow with you and Mum, can't I?"

Her father set down his fork and looked at her sympathetically.

"Gin bug, your Mum and I aren't going to be at the Burrow."

"Well where are you going to be? I'll just come with you!"

Molly entered the room, wiping tears from her eyes. She quietly took her place next to Arthur and started filling her plate.

"Mum! Why can't I come with you?"

Without looking up, her mother said, "We need you here, Ginny."

Again, she opened her mouth to protest, but her father lifted his hand and said, "That's enough, Ginny. You're new responsibility is to mind the headquarters. And you'll be safe here."

Ginny turned and looked at Harry. He had abandoned his plate and was staring at the locket in his hands. She just nodded to her father and turned her attention her plate.

She heard her father whisper to her mum, "How is he?"

She couldn't make out her response as a bit of chatter picked up around the table. She looked up at Harry again, to see him glumly staring back.

* * *

When Ginny first opened her eyes to the blinding morning sunshine, she distinctly heard birds chirping in the distance. She knew instantly that it was strange the house should be so quiet. She stretched slowly, trying to make out the sounds of her mother in the kitchen, or of someone thumping up the stairs.

Absolute silence.

She rolled out of bed slowly, pulling on her dressing gown and putting on her bed slippers. She stood slowly and stretched again. She knew she wouldn't be properly functioning until she got a cup of tea.

She yawned loudly as she inched down the stairs to the kitchen. She opened the door and opened her mouth to mutter to her mum for a cup of tea -

Instead of her mother, she found Draco Malfoy. He was sitting alone at the empty table. He was dressed in pajamas, wrapped in a luxurious dressing robe. His blond hair was ruffled. His face was in his hands.

He looked up at her with tired eyes.

She stared at him blankly. _There he is_, she thought, her mind racing for something to say. Her heart raced as she felt several emotions all at once. Hate. Pity. Distrust.

"Want some breakfast?" she asked in a quiet voice, afraid of disrupting the silence which loomed like a spell over the house.

"Yes, please."

* * *

Ginny stood at the sink, washing up the dishes from breakfast. She heard Malfoy leave the kitchen, and heard his room's door shut. She wondered if she were alone in the house with him. Where was her mother? Where was Hermione?

She turned off the tap and could hear people entering the house, by the sound of it, her mother and Tonks.

She went up to meet them.

"Mum, where have you been?" Ginny asked, cringing at the whine in her voice, "Where is everyone?"

Her mother exchanged glances with Tonks.

"Wotcher, Gin bug," Tonks said, winking at her. "I'll just go set this stuff away, Molly," she gestured to the bag of groceries in her arms.

Molly led Ginny into the study with several bags in her own arms.

"What's all that?" Ginny asked, helping her mum unpack. The bags were full of schoolbooks.

"School's starting?" she asked, very hopefully.

"No, dear, it's decidely not," Molly answered, putting her hand on Ginny's cheek. "We got these in Diagon Alley for you and Draco. It's important you try to keep up with your studies."

"Well where is everyone?"

"Harry, Ron, and Hermione... they left last night. On some sort of mission. Nobody knows where they are. Can't believe they'd just run off..." Molly mumbled, turning back to emptying the bags.

Ginny silently thumbed through a book. Potions. _Ugh_, thought Ginny, _I can never seem to escape stupid Potions._

"You understand you're not to leave here, under any circumstances, Ginny?"

"Yes, Mum, I sort of got that impression," she replied, sullenly.

"And Malfoy - dear, you're not to let him leave either."

"What am I," she had asked, "His bloody warden?"

She wasn't a warden, she was a prisoner, too. Her mum stroked her cheek again and bustled off to help Tonks in the kitchen.

* * *

It was another quiet morning. She knew it from the moment she heard those distant birds chirping. For a brief second she was jealous of them. They were outside, free and flying.

She found herself at the door of the kitchen once again, opening the door to find Draco Malfoy sitting at the table. His ruffled hair. His thick, silk dressing robe. His face in his hands.

She was surprised again by the wave of emotions that swept over her upon seeing him. The hate was still there, years of teasing and taunting and arguing couldn't be forgotten in an instant. But it wasn't as overwhelming as she'd thought it would be.

"Breakfast?"

"Yes, please."

* * *

Please, please review! I hope you enjoyed.


	2. Locket

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Two: Locket

* * *

As Ginny tipped sausages onto Draco Malfoy's plate, she glanced at his face. It was blank, staring forward at nothing. It was like he barely registered her presence. Or existence.

It'd been a few days like this. Just day in and day out. Meals together, in complete silence and then they'd each shut themselves in their rooms, pretending to read their schoolbooks.

She put the pan in the sink. She sat at the table, directly across from Malfoy, and nursed her cup of tea. She glanced up at him, watching him daintily eat his food.

"How are you feeling today?" she asked him, hoping to start a conversation. She sipped from her cup, keeping her gaze focused on his pale face.

"What do you care?" he asked roughly, though his words did not come out as harsh as he had probably intended.

She lowered her eyes thoughtfully to the table, refraining from retorting sarcastically. The rest of breakfast passed in silence. He finished his food and walked out of the room without a backwards glance or a 'thank you.'

Ginny looked into her teacup. It was still half full. She drained it slowly, wondering why she no longer found herself able to completely _hate_ Malfoy.

* * *

Ginny passed Malfoy's door on the stairs on her way to her room. She sighed. Taking care of headquarters was going to be a lonely and thankless job.

She entered her sunny, but bare room. The only thing that really reminded her of home was the soft quilted blanket at the foot of her bed. She made it with her mum a few summers back. She sat down on it and lay back on the bed.

The quietness of the house disturbed her sometimes. She was used to her brothers always making a ruckus at home. The twins would explode something at least once a week. Even her father would get some decent noise going off in the shed.

The quietest year of her life had been the year Ron entered Hogwarts. She hadn't felt that alone in a long time. Perhaps the only time she'd been lonelier...her mind automatically went to her own first year at school. She shuddered and rolled over onto her stomach.

Ginny looked around the room, at the torn aged wallpaper, at the little desk by the window, her books stacked high, at the wardrobe by the door, clothes spilling out.

This was now home. It was a weird feeling, one she couldn't quite adjust to. Something was missing. That feeling of belonging, the feeling that everything was right in the world.

She sighed and picked up her bathrobe, planning to lose herself in hot water.

* * *

After a long bath, Ginny braided her damp hair in front of a fire in the study. There was soft rain falling outside, making a gentle pat-pat-pat noise on the window, a welcome change to the silence still looming in the house. She perused the shelves a bit for an interesting book.

She blindly pulled down a book, flipping it open. Instead of seeing the words on the page, she found herself wondering what Malfoy was doing. Was he still shut up in his room? Would anyone else be coming around to the house today? Her parents? Tonks? Anyone?

How long was she supposed to endure this exile?

She sighed, focusing her eyes on the book, trying to make out the words... _what was this nonsense?_ She looked at the cover of the book - Ancient Arte of Fyre Spells. Fyre. Fire. It wasn't making much sense to her, so she set it back on the bookcase. _There's not a decent book in the house_, she decided.

She stood and went to the window, watching the sparkling rivulets of water run down the glass. Summer was starting to fade into a gray autumn.

* * *

"Hello? Ginny, you awake?"

She stirred from her sleep and noticed first off that it was barely after dawn. Someone was calling her name. She rolled off her bed and grabbed her wand off the bedside table. She shoved her feet into her bed slippers and ran to her door. When she reached the landing she could make out Hermione's voice from the foyer.

"Now where could it be? R...A...B...Black," she mumbled.

"Hermione! What are you doing back? Where's Harry?" she asked, before she could stop herself.

"I've no time to explain, I need your help to find something."

Hermione was breathless, looking very anxious and frazzled. Ginny quickly nodded to show she understood. Hermione moved quickly toward the parlor and Ginny followed closely behind. Hermione started to scan the Black family tree tapestry.

"RAB... RA...Black," Hermione mumbled. "Regulus..."

"What is it, Hermione? Is anything wrong?" Ginny looked from Hermione back to the tapestry. Ginny found herself glancing at Draco Malfoy's name, stitched in a silver thread.

"It's very important that we find it – you have to help me look. Merlin, I hope it wasn't thrown out."

"What are we looking for exactly?"

"A locket. A heavy silver locket. Remember we found something like that a while back? It was in one of the cupboards..." she trailed off distractedly. "Can you check the attic? That's where most of the things were stashed during the Clean-Up. I think I have an idea..." Hermione set off toward the kitchen.

While Ginny was searching through boxes in the attic, she heard Hermione call from downstairs.

"I've found it, Ginny!"

"Where was it? What is this all about, Hermione?" she called back, as she descended the stairs. She met Hermione in the foyer, as she was putting on her coat.

"You're leaving already?"

"Yes, it's urgent that I get this back to Harry. Don't worry, Ginny. We're alright. We'll see you soon enough. Stay safe."

Hermione pulled Ginny in for a quick hug. As she pulled away, Ginny noticed Hermione was looking over her head. When Ginny turned, she saw Malfoy standing on the stairs.

"Hello, Malfoy," Hermione said, nodding politely.

"Granger."

Hermione was out the door before Ginny could say goodbye.

* * *

"What was all that about?"

Ginny shut and sealed the front door and turned to see Malfoy walking down the steps. He was bathed and dressed in fine black slacks and gray turtleneck sweater. His hair sleek and shiny. He usually put himself together after breakfast.

"I don't know...exactly," Ginny said, unable to meet his eyes.

"That was Granger, right? What was she looking for?"

"I... don't know..."

"You do know. You just don't trust me." Her eyes darted to his face, to see him looking at the door behind her head. He didn't look angry, exactly. He looked defeated. He turned to head back to his room.

"I'm not sure what it was all about - she was searching for a locket or something that she needed to get to Harry right away. I didn't even get to see it..." her voice trailed off.

"A locket?"

"Yeah," she answered, thinking back to the locket that Harry had been obsessing over. "She went on about Regulus Black, too, not sure why..."

"I'd better let McGonagall know she was here," he said, stepping toward the study. As an afterthought, he turned to Ginny and said, "I'll be down for breakfast in a few moments."

Ginny rolled her eyes and headed for the kitchen.

* * *

Please review! I love feedback! And it always encourages me to write/post more!


	3. Harmless

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Three: Harmless

* * *

A door slammed. Raised voices carried up the stairs. Ginny's eyes opened slowly. It was dark outside, and there were no birds chirping.

Her brain was still fogged with sleep as she pulled herself from her bed. She opened the door to her room to hear a large group of the Order making their way down to the kitchen. She freshened up and dressed quickly.

She passed Malfoy's door on her way down the stairs. It was still closed but light from underneath spilled into the hallway.

* * *

Ginny stood outside the kitchen door, listening.

"I have no idea how it happened. We can't even contact Harry or Ron."

"What can we do about it? They don't _want_ to be contacted."

"This is all so hopeless. What are they doing out there alone? Can't we help them?"

"Harry refused to tell -"

Draco stepped up behind her, he was dressed with his hair made.

"I don't think you're intended to hear any of that," he drawled, stepping past her to open the door. They entered and all conversation hushed.

"What's going on?" she asked, as she approached her mother, offering her a kiss on the cheek, and helping to arrange some breakfast.

Draco sat beside Remus Lupin, who leaned back in his chair with his arms folded. Remus smiled at him and said a quiet hello.

Tonks stifled a yawn and shrugged her slender shoulders.

Moody and Shacklebolt continued a whispered conversation, none of which she could make out.

* * *

As soon as the meal was finished, most of the Order members rushed off to work. Remus Lupin had other Order responsibilities and also stepped out into the cloudy morning.

Ginny helped her mother with the dishes and tried to think of a way to ask what was happening. For any news.

"Dear, it's looking like there'll be fewer and fewer visitors soon. A lot has been happening. Hopefully this war may end soon."

"What do you mean, Mum?"

"Harry seems to be doing something that's got the Death Eaters all riled up. They're getting careless. There was a raid with several captures last night."

"Oh. Hermione was here yesterday."

"Yes, McGonagall told us. What on earth could they be up to! They're just babies, for Merlin's sake."

Her mother looked lost in thought for a few moments. Ginny toyed idly with a tea towel, while she watched her mother's eyes.

Finally, Molly Weasley looked at her daughter with a gentle smile. She tucked a stray lock behind her daughter's ear.

"How are you holding up, dear?"

"It's lonely here, Mum. There's nothing to do."

"You have to keep up with your school work. And Malfoy?"

"I don't know. What about him?"

"What does he do? Been treating you ok?"

Ginny shrugged.

"We don't really talk." Ginny thought of something, "Mum, why did they finally decide to let him stay here? What makes everyone trust him?"

Molly looked contemplative a moment before answering - "He can be trusted - I'll leave it at that. Don't worry about him, baby. He's...a good boy...deep down. He's harmless."

* * *

In the afternoon, just as Ginny closed her Transfiguration textbook, it started pouring outside. There were a couple flashes of lightning and heavy thunder.

She stood and walked up the stairs to Malfoy's room. She knocked softly on the door. There was no answer.

"Malfoy?" Still no answer.

She tried the knob, and the door opened easily. She saw he was sitting on the window seat, watching the rain.

"Would you like some lunch?"

He turned to her and hurriedly wiped his eyes.

"You alright?" Ginny asked.

He cleared his throat and stood. "Yes, I... I'm fine. Just thinking about my mother."

Ginny's heart fluttered with sympathy. She couldn't imagine being without her Mum during a time like this.

"Come on, I'll make us something comforting."

"Yeah. Ok."

* * *

"So how much longer are we going to be stuck here?" His voice broke the silence.

"What?"

Ginny turned to look at him while she stirred the soup.

"Why won't they let me actually help?"

"How would I know?"

"Well, what are _you_ doing here, Weasley?"

"I'm here because it's been decided I can't stay at the Burrow without my parents. They are busy with all this Order business and it's not safe for me to be home alone - "

"And are you safe here? Alone?"

"Well they redid all the wards on the place. And a new Secret Keeper. Plus, I'm not really alone, am I?"

He scoffed.

"If you mean me, that's not much company, is it?"

She smiled at him. "No, I guess not."

She served him the hot soup and brought a plate of sandwiches to the table. She started to nibble on one.

"What have you been doing all this time? In your room?"

He looked at her, not sure how to answer. "Nothing."

"Yeah, same," she sighed, smiling at him. "It's been a touch depressing."


	4. What's in a name?

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Four: What's in a name?

* * *

_This is nice._

That was all Ginny could think. It was _nice_ sitting with someone else in the same room. Something so simple that she'd missed so much. After spending nearly a fortnight in the same house, they're finally sitting together in the same room.

It was surprisingly nice. Even if he was studiously ignoring her. She watched the flames in the fireplace. Watched the rain trickle down the windowpane. Watched his eyes flutter across a page.

She looked down at the book in her lap. Potions. She read for a few pages. Her eyes were instinctively drawn once again to his face. She wondered what he was reading. He glanced up and caught her watching him.

"Reading potions. Maybe you should, too."

Her eyes widened and instantly dropped her book. She picked up where she left off and didn't stop reading the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

"Why haven't you put up a fight?"

He had asked if they could sit together again after dinner. She sat on the rug near the fireplace, braiding her hair. He was in the armchair, ignoring the book open in his hands.

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at him over her shoulder.

"What I mean is - well, you're such a fighter. I remember that hex you used on me once. Why aren't you arguing with your folks? To join the war?"

"I have six brothers. Even if my parents were crazy enough to let me join the Order, the six of them would make sure that I didn't."

"Must be nice."

"What?"

"To be so well-protected."

He shut his book and put it on the table beside him.

"It makes me feel secure. And loved. And very helpless. And sometimes hopeless," she answered.

"Do you want to fight in the war?"

"Not really. I just hate the whole idea of war. I hate it. But I don't want to fight. I wanted to be a healer."

Ginny released her hair, letting the braid come undone.

"Wanted? Not anymore?" He raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know. There may be no more Hogwarts. I don't know how we'll ever finish our studies."

"I wanted to be an auror," he said, shifting his gaze to the fire.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Why? I never imagined - "

"Never imagined what?"

"I don't know. I guess I never imagined you wanting much of anything. Except wanting to kick a puppy. Or steal candy from a baby. Stuff like that."

"Evil stuff, right?"

She smiled softly and nodded. He smirked. Slowly, it slipped away, leaving his face blank.

"That's why I did this." He pulled up his sleeve and showed her the revealed skin. There, laying dormant but menacing, was the Dark Mark, imprinted black against his soft, pale skin.

Her eyes met his. He looked completely withdrawn, his eyes not focused on her, but staring off behind her. She licked her lips and reached forward to pull down his sleeve, covering his forearm.

"We all make mistakes."

He scoffed at her.

"I'll pay for this _mistake_ until the day I die."

"So...what are you doing here, at Order Headquarters?"

"You mean, besides being guarded like a prisoner?"

"I mean, why did you come here with McGonagall that night?"

"I don't know where to begin to answer that."

"You don't have to tell me. I've just...you know...been dying to know. Is all."

He smiled at her. It was an awkward curve of his lips - something far different from his trademark smirk, something vulnerable and shy.

"I'll tell you some other time."

* * *

Ginny lay awake in her bed that night.

The late summer storm raged on outside. Flashes of lightning and waves of thunder. The steady fall of rain.

Her room was dark and chilly, but she felt a cold sweat develop on her forehead.

Suddenly she felt a sharp, blasting pain in her chest. She couldn't breath. She struggled to sit up, but found herself immobilized.

Pain flooded her entire body and Ginny screamed for what felt like hours. She felt herself fade to darkness.

* * *

She awoke to someone slapping her cheek softly.

"Weasley! Weasley! Can you hear me?"

Her eyes fluttered open. She could make out blond hair and pale skin in the wandlight. Draco Malfoy.

"What happened?" she moaned, as she struggled to sit up. She saw that Malfoy was crouched by her bedside, wearing his pajamas.

"Funny, that's what I was going to ask you," he sneered. He offered her a glass of water.

She drank slowly, thinking back. She raised a hand to her chest. She panicked a moment, thinking back to the end of her first year, when she'd felt something very similar. But it was alright now. She felt fine. Just a little weak.

"I...it was...just a nightmare." She averted her eyes, not meeting his steely gaze.

"A nightmare? You screamed bloody murder. And when I came in here, you wouldn't wake up - just kept whimpering and tossing around."

"I don't know what happened. Just felt a horrible pain in my chest. Like something... something inside me broke."

He looked stunned at that information.

"I think I'm ok now," she added, shakily, trying to shrug it off. She lay back in her bed. "I'll try to get to sleep."

He nodded slowly, eying her as if seeing her for the very first time. He stood gracefully and left her room, softly shutting the door behind him.

* * *

Ginny entered the kitchen the next morning, to find a ruffled Draco Malfoy sitting at the table. He was wearing the same pajamas and was wrapped up in his dressing robe.

"Breakfast?"

"Yes, please."

She padded toward the cupboard, and started on some pancakes.

"You know, I don't even know your name, Weasley."

She turned to look at him, holding a mixing bowl in one hand. She smiled broadly.

"Yeah, I figured. I'm just the littlest Weasley, eh?"

"Well...yeah."

"Ginevra. Most people call me Ginny." She stepped forward and offered him a handshake. He looked from her hand to her face. Without removing the blank look on his face, he took her hand and kissed her knuckles. She blushed.

"Ginevra. I'm Draco Malfoy."

She snickered. "Yeah, I knew that."

"Oh. It's just that you always call me Malfoy, so I wasn't sure."

"I see," she found she couldn't stop from grinning. She went back to work on the pancakes.

She could hear him muttering her name under his breath.

"Ginevra...Ginevra...Ginny."


	5. Back and Forth

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Five: Back and Forth

* * *

"Oh bugger. Can't reach it." Ginny stretched on tiptoe, trying to reach a box of cereal on the top shelf.

"I'll get it." Malfoy stood up from the kitchen table. He walked behind her, leaned over her short frame and easily grabbed the box.

"Thanks." She reached out to take the box from him, but he held it above her head, just out of reach.

"Oh, very funny, Malfoy. Now give me the box." He grinned, that odd lopsided smile that made him look so innocent. Ginny's breath hitched in her throat a moment.

"Calling me Malfoy still?"

"Yeah. What of it?" She reached out and tried to grab the box while he wasn't paying attention. He grinned broadly as he held the box up higher.

"You want this box, _Weasley_?" He put a harsh emphasis on her last name.

"Oh come on, Malfoy. I'm trying to make _your_ breakfast." He took a step back toward the table. He filled his bowl and closed up the box. He stepped back towards Ginny. She outstretched her hand, waiting for him to hand her the box. He didn't. He was starting to put it back up on the shelf.

"Hey! I want some, too!" She tried to snatch the box. He laughed as he pulled the box back away from her. She grabbed his arm, barely suppressing her own grin. Finally a thought occurred to her. She dug her fingers under his dressing robe and tickled his stomach.

"Whoa - hey - " He reflexively bent over, trying to shield himself from her fingers. As she grabbed again for the box, he straightened and managed to put the box back on the shelf.

"Not fair," Ginny complained, as she redoubled her tickling efforts. He laughed musically, throwing his head back.

Eyeing his bowl of cereal, she suddenly dove for the table. She took his seat and poured milk over the cereal, and quickly dug in with a spoon.

"Ha!" she said, with her mouth full of cereal.

He stood by the cupboard, a huge open grin on his face. He reached up once more, and brought the box of cereal to the table. He silently sat in her usual seat, and poured himself a bowl.

* * *

Ginny tucked her hair behind her ears. She glanced up from her textbook to see Malfoy was looking at her. She raised an eyebrow.

"You really have six brothers?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

She went back to her book.

"Six?"

She looked up with a smile. He was closing his book and setting it aside.

"Yeah. Six. There's Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred and George, and Ron."

"Wow." He seemed to think about that a moment. "Which one got hurt the night Dumbledore died?"

She was stunned to hear him ask such a thing. Her face flushed with heat. All this time she'd suppressed that hateful emotion she felt around him. His words seemed to unlock that hate and now she couldn't help herself from growing angry.

"Bill," she answered through gritted teeth. Oddly, this conversation would put things into perspective for her.

"That's right. He married that French Veela, didn't he?"

"Yes. Her name is Fleur," she answered steelily. He ignored her harsh tone and gritted teeth. He seemed to draw some sick pleasure in bringing up these painful points.

"And which one is the one who left your family to side with the stupid git of a Minister?"

"Percy."

"Yeah. He's a ponce," he said, matter-of-factly, as she clenched her fist. "I met him once. Invited to the Manor for dinner with the Minister. He was a total lapdog. Where's he now?"

"I don't know," she said, she stood up and went to the window. She watched the trees outside sway in the wind. "I don't particularly care."

"Fred and George are the twins, right? They've got that joke shop?"

Ginny was reminded of the Peruvian powder that Malfoy had used. It was purchased from the twins. She remained silent, her back to him. She watched dark clouds glide across the sky.

"I accidentally poisoned Ron Weasley - "

"Shut up, Malfoy! God, what's wrong with you? I finally brought myself to believe what everyone was saying about you!"

He stood up, backlit from the fire, his face dancing with shadows.

"And what have they been saying, eh, Weasley?"

"Mum said you're a '_good boy'_. That you're harmless. You can fool her, but I won't let you fool me, Malfoy!"

Ginny stormed out of the study. She raced up the stairs to her room. She slammed the door and threw herself on her bed. She counted the seconds until her breathing slowed to normal.

* * *

It was raining again. Ginny hardly registered this as she lay in her bed. She was unbelievably angry with herself. How easily had she trusted Malfoy? How easily did she accept the fact that he was - he was what? Good? Not evil...

She had given him a chance. Did he deserve one? Merlin, she had called his Dark Mark a mistake. When had he ever acted like he didn't want one?

She rolled over and punched her pillow.

How was she supposed to go on living here with him? She was told that he could be trusted. He was harmless. But how could she forgive him for all the things he had done in the past? Oh, Merlin, she had so many questions for him and at the same time she never wanted to see his pale, pointed face again.

There was a soft knock at her door.

"Weasley?"

She didn't answer.

"Weasley?" He knocked again. "Ginevra?"

She sat up in her bed.

"Listen," he called through the closed door, "I'm sorry. I just..." His voice trailed off. After a moment, she heard him walk away and down to his room.

* * *

The next morning, Ginny stayed in bed as long as she possibly could. She wanted to avoid Malfoy as long as possible. Her stomach gave a great growl.

She sighed. It couldn't be helped. She put on her bed slippers and swung her dressing gown around her shoulders as she padded slowly down the stairs. She stood up tall, head held high, as she pushed open the kitchen door.

Sitting at the table, looking like a lost little boy, was Draco Malfoy. Wearing the same silk dressing robe. His hair was ruffled. He was straddling the bench seat, facing the door, and he seemed to be watching it - waiting. The look on his face was blank. Ginny realized he waiting for her to offer to make him breakfast. Well she was tired of acting like his house elf.

She started to make some tea and toast. He stood up and stepped over to her side.

"Weas – Er, Ginny...," he whispered. She turned to glare at him while she buttered the bread, refusing to say anything.

"I just wanted to apologize for yesterday," he continued in a quiet, deep voice.

"Well, it's a little late for that, Malfoy," she tossed the butterknife in the sink. She flipped the slices on bread that were warming in a pan. "Why should I... Why would I ever... I just...Aaah," she groaned, realizing she burned her wrist on the side of the pan.

Malfoy winced and, looking slightly more concerned that she'd have expected of him, he conjured up a small piece of ice. He placed it in her hand. Reluctantly, she took it and put it on the small red spot welting on her arm. They stood there a moment, each avoiding the other's eyes.

The kettle whistled.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Ginny dropped her ice cube. "Just go sit down."

He went and sat at the table, while she finished arranging the tea.

She set a cup before him, along with a few slices of toast. She put her own tea and toast on a tray and started to take it up to her room. She shot a glance at Malfoy to see him looking very disappointed and helpless.

She ignored the odd feeling washing over her and swept up the stairs with her tray.

* * *

Oh, Merlin - that guilty feeling wouldn't leave her alone. She was soaking in the bath. She kept seeing Draco Malfoy's pale face - his furrowed brow and frown. She hadn't even given him a chance to explain himself.

She got out of the bath and quickly dressed. She'd see if she could find him and offer him a decent lunch. She knocked on his door and called his name. No answer. When she peeked inside, she saw his room was empty, his bed unmade. She frowned and her mother's traits kicked in as she rushed into the room and straightened up.

She walked down the stairs to the study - maybe he was reading. The room was deserted, the fireplace cold. She tried the parlor, also empty.

She pushed open the kitchen door to find Draco sitting just where she'd left him. His teacup was empty, but the toast was still sitting there, cold and soggy. He looked up at her, looking like a pathetic puppy. She almost grinned, struggling to keep a smirk off her face.

"You hungry?"

He nodded, not meeting her eyes.

"Want some lunch?"

His eyes met hers. He nodded.

"Fine. I'll make you lunch - if you promise to answer some questions."

He smirked and shook his head.

"You'll get your answers," he said as he stood up. "But not today, Weasley."

He left Ginny standing puzzled in the kitchen.


	6. Hot Water

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Six: Hot Water

* * *

Ginny pressed her ear harder to the door, wishing she had one of Fred and George's Extendable Ears.

"Now, dear, I've left some fresh wash for you in your room. I also changed your sheets."

"Thank you, ma'am." Ginny rolled her eyes at that. She could just picture her mum blushing over being addressed like that. There was a clatter of pans in the sink, and the sound of silverware, as Draco must have started eating.

"Has she been treating you alright?" Her mother's voice was quiet, and Ginny was shocked to find that she sounded genuinely concerned. She pressed a hand to the door, listening for the answer.

"Well..."

"Yes, dear? Anything wrong?"

"Mrs. Weasley, I don't know how to cook. I've never been in a kitchen my entire life. And if my meals aren't prepared for me..." His voice trailed off. Her mother gasped, in understanding.

"I'll set her straight on that. She'll be in charge of meals." Ginny could just picture his smug smirk on hearing that. "And I'll tell her that you'll be in charge of washing up afterwards." There was a sharp clatter of silverware, and Ginny quickly stifled her giggle.

"Yes, ma'am."

"I know this is hard for you, dear. Have you been in touch with your mother?"

"McGonagall doesn't think it'd be wise. They're keeping a close watch on the Manor. Her sister, Andromeda, has offered to take her to a safe place in France."

"Oh, that's Tonk's mother? I see. Well, McGonagall may be around to bring you those books and papers you asked for. She also wants to ask you some more questions."

"That's all anyone wants from me. Answers."

"Hmm, I better wake Ginny. She's usually up by now..."

Ginny took that as her cue to enter the kitchen, with a broad, clueless smile.

* * *

Her mother left mid-morning, heading off into the cloudy day. Ginny sat by the parlor window watching the little activity on the street below. It was so lonely here.

"Hey, Weasley, where do you lot keep the Potions ingredients? The kitchen?" She turned to see Malfoy standing in the doorway.

"What for?"

"I need them. Can you tell me where they are? Or do I have to owl your mother?"

She scowled, but stood and gestured for him to follow. She took him up to the attic and pointed out the old cabinet filled with ingredients.

"What's this for, anyway, Malfoy?"

"I can't tell you."

"Don't trust me, either?"

He stared at her a moment, hesitation in his eyes. He turned to the cabinet and started to inspect the stock.

"I just can't tell you yet."

She stayed and watched as he gathered several bottles and then he hurried off to the study without another word.

* * *

That afternoon, Minerva McGonagall did arrive, with a satchel full of books and newspapers. Ginny looked at them curiously, eager for something to read. But McGonagall made it clear that these were not for her.

"I need to give these to Mr. Malfoy, he's particularly requested these supplies. Where is that boy?" Her gaze shifted from the stairway leading to the kitchen to the stairway leading to the rooms upstairs.

"Malfoy! Malfoy, get down here!" Ginny boomed - her voice echoing around the foyer. McGonagall put her free hand over one ear and muttered something about waking the dead.

Soon enough Draco Malfoy came slowly and gracefully down the stairs. He ignored Ginny completely, as he approached McGonagall with an extended hand. Ginny was stunned to see that McGonagall took it warmly and pulled him in for a small hug. She then offered him the satchel, silently, watching as he sifted through the books inside. He nodded and started to look uncomfortable.

"Miss Weasley, would you be so kind as to prepare some tea and snacks for us? We'll be in the parlor." McGonagall left the foyer, with Malfoy close behind, clutching the satchel.

* * *

"A ruddy_ house-elf_. That's all I am. Worthless bloody house-elf. Ouch, dammit!" Ginny tenderly blew on her fingers. The water was scalding hot and it had sloshed onto her hand when she angrily slammed the teapot onto a tray. After running her red fingers under the cool tap for a few seconds, she added a plate of biscuits and another with sliced cheese and crackers. She picked it up and quietly made her way to the parlor.

She hoped she could stand outside a few moments and try to catch their conversation, but no luck - they'd cast a soundproofing spell. She balanced the tray on one arm and knocked on the door. It immediately opened and she entered, finding Draco standing in front of the window, staring out at the gray sky. McGonagall was seated on a sofa facing his back. Neither made a move to help her.

Ginny placed the tray on a small table and started to serve the tea. _Bloody house-elf!_ She poured the tea and asked for their preferences on sugar and cream.

"Now, Miss Weasley, I understand there was an incident the other night?" asked McGonagall as she took a cup and saucer from Ginny.

"I don't understand - what incident?" Ginny asked, now fixing a cup for Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy mentioned you awoke screaming the other night? And that you couldn't be woken?"

Ginny spilled hot tea on her fingers again, not bothering to hold back a string of swear words. She took a moment to compose herself. Draco stepped over from the window and finished arranging his cup of tea. She searched his face, but he didn't meet her eyes.

"It was nothing. I'm fine now."

"Yes, but - Miss Weasley... Ginny, come here a moment," said McGonagall, patting the seat next to her. Ginny obeyed.

"Will you please tell me what happened?" McGonagall looked at her, earnestly. Ginny drew a breath and collected her thoughts. Of all things to be worried about...

"I was lying in bed - I was awake, actually," Ginny said, sneaking a glance at Draco. He seemed surprised to hear that. "I just suddenly felt a sharp, piercing pain in my chest. I couldn't move for a few moments. I remember screaming and then I fainted. That's all. I was fine when I woke up a few minutes later."

McGonagall took small sips of tea while she considered this. She exchanged a look with Draco - both of them looking grim.

"Has this ever happened before?"

Ginny shook her head, well aware that she was lying.

"Very well, you may go. Mr. Malfoy and I have further matters to discuss."

* * *

Ginny banged the pan on the stove as loud as she could. She was preparing dinner and wondering where Malfoy was. He'd disappeared to his room as soon as he'd seen McGonagall off.

As she was dicing up vegetables for the stew, she heard the kitchen door open and Draco enter.

"Why'd you tell McGonagall?" She wheeled around, clenching the stirring spoon like a wand.

Instead of replying, he sat at the table and started flipping through a thick leather-bound book.

"I asked you a question," she said, turning back to the stove. "What are you reading?"

Over the bubbling of her stew, she heard the soft rustle of pages turning. She shook her head and let out a frustrated sigh.

"I know about you, Ginevra." The forced edge to his voice made her freeze mid-stir. He continued, "I know about the Chamber of Secrets, the diary. Tom Riddle."

At this, she spun around, her face twisted in fury. But she was surprised to see that he wasn't taunting her. He was looking up at her, not quite concerned, but curious.

"What? Who - " she shrieked. He interrupted smoothly.

"My father. And bits from Snape. And I've overheard your brother and Granger talking about you."

"Whatever you think you know - " Her heart was racing. Her breathes were catching in her throat. Her vision was blurring.

"Come sit down, Weasley," he commanded, turning off the stove with a flick of his wand. She stumbled to the table and sat heavily. She looked at him, resignedly, aware that her vision was slowly clearing. She focused her gaze on the glittering reflections in Malfoy's hair. He cleared his throat and set down his book.

"I think that your incident a few nights back is somehow related to the Dark Lord. From what I know, a part of him was transferred into you when..." he cleared his throat again, and continued, "You see, Potter is off on his damn secret mission, doing something that's affecting the Dark Lord. Whatever Potter's doing, well, it might be affecting you, too."


	7. Truth Be Told

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Seven: Truth Be Told

* * *

Ginny sat on the floor by the fire in the study, knitting. It was rather boring and tedious, but it gave her fingers something to do, while she was thinking. Draco was sitting at the desk near the window, reading through stacks of potions books by candlelight. It was storming outside.

She looked down at the scarf she was working on. Her mother was thoughtful enough to bring by a knitting basket for her, something she could do. She decided to start knitting Christmas presents - like her mum did. Scarves.

She heard a frustrated crumple of parchment at the desk, and she turned to look. Draco was sitting with his hands covering his face, books ignored.

"What is it?"

He jumped a little at the sound of her voice. He turned and looked at her.

"Nothing... What in Merlin's name are you doing?" He gestured to the yarn and needles.

"I'm knitting."

At this, he seemed speechless. He raised his eyebrows, as though to question the sanity of such an action.

* * *

"Can I help you go through these books? What are you looking for?" Ginny stood by his desk, as he flipped the page of a potions text. It was late evening, raining outside.

"No. Don't touch those - " he said, pushing her hand away from a stack of dusty books. She backed away.

"Why can't I help? I'm not bloody useless!" She said, emphatically, throwing herself into the nearest armchair. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the wall.

"I'm researching a potion that might help you." Draco was turned in his chair, trying to catch Ginny's gaze.

"Help me what?" she asked, focusing her eyes on his. He took a deep breath, and stood up. He started to pace.

"Well, I told you earlier - about how the Dark Lord may have embedded a part of him, a part of his soul, into you. If this is the case, you may be in danger. Because whatever Potter is doing - he is destroying the Dark Lord. Potter will destroy every last piece of him, Ginevra. And if there is a part of him in you -"

"You think Harry will have to kill me, too?" she gasped. Draco stopped pacing, and came to sit in the armchair across from hers.

"Well, no. It's more complicated than that. I just wish I knew what Potter was off doing. Nobody really knows, so nobody has any straight answers. But I think we can rid you of the Dark Lord. There is a way to extract -"

He was cut off by the slam of the front door. They both stood in shock.

"At this hour? Who do you think-" Ginny whispered.

He swept her behind him with one arm and drew his wand. Ginny, not one to be mollycoddled, also drew her wand.

There were footsteps, and voices, in the foyer.

The door to the study opened and revealed Hermione and Ron. Hermione grinned and Ron scowled at the sight of Draco Malfoy.

"Oh Merlin, you scared us to bits!" Ginny attempted to step forward, but Draco blocked her with his arm and kept his wand up.

"How do we know it's really them?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at Ron.

"Oh, honestly, of course it's us!" Hermione stepped into the room and crossed her arms.

"Where's Harry?" asked Ginny. She watched as Hermione and Ron exchanged a look.

* * *

Ginny counted out four teacups and set them on the table. She sat beside Draco and watched as Hermione magicked tea into the teapot before them. Along with an assortment of biscuits onto an empty plate.

"I wish I could do magic," Ginny sighed, picking up a cookie.

"Why not? You're a witch." asked Draco, pouring tea for himself.

"I'm underage. I have to do everything by hand."

"Like a common muggle," he scoffed. Then he hesitantly eyed Hermione. "I've been wondering why you cooked like that."

"Enjoyed making a slave of my sister, eh, Malfoy?" asked Ron, still scowling. He was sitting back with his arms crossed, ignoring his teacup. Draco didn't answer him and turned his attention to Hermione.

"Can I talk to you, Granger? Alone." He said this pointedly, glaring at Ron. He stood up and left the kitchen. Hermione threw a pained look at Ginny, but followed him quickly.

Ginny looked at Ron, to see him pouring himself tea, and mumbling to himself.

"You don't trust him, Ron?" she asked, as she sipped her tea.

"It's not about trust, Ginny. He's a bastard. He's a bloody wanker, ignorant git. It's not about trust."

"But you do trust him?"

She watched Ron swallow a huge gulp of hot tea.

"Well, yeah, after what he did."

"What did he do, Ron? Why does everyone trust him?"

"You don't know? You're living here with him, and you don't know?"

"What?"

"Well I can't say exactly, but Harry's vouched for him. And..."

"And? What?"

"The only reason the Order has agreed to let him stay here, on our side, is because he made an Oath."

"What does that bloody mean? An Oath?"

"He's pledged himself to the light, Ginny. He's on our side."

* * *

It was very early the next morning. Ginny was standing in the foyer, watching Ron and Hermione put on their coats and stuff hats on their heads. It was raining. She held out an umbrella to Hermione and gave her a quick hug.

"You sure you don't want any breakfast?" She asked, giving Ron a kiss on the cheek.

"No, we have to get going. Supposed to meet Harry in an hour," murmured Ron.

"Where?"

"Can't tell you that."

He opened the door and ushered Hermione out. She opened her umbrella and started down the pathway. Ron turned once more to Ginny and ruffled her hair. He opened his umbrella.

"He misses you," Ron said, as he stepped outside.

Ginny smiled in response and waved. "Stay safe, and write to Mum - she's always worried about you lot!" Ron chuckled and raced down the path to catch up with Hermione.

Ginny closed the door, pressed her back against it heavily and looked up at the staircase.

* * *

Ginny was sitting at the kitchen table, nursing a steaming cup of tea, when Draco walked in. He looked surprised to see that she was there before he was.

"I take it that your brother and Granger have left?"

She nodded. She gestured to the teapot and stack of toast and yawned. He came forward, his hair rumpled and dressed in pajamas and dressing robe, and poured himself a cup of tea. He sat across from her.

"What did you have to talk to Hermione about?"

"I wanted to know what they've been up to. I explained about you. About the potion I'm working on. I just needed more information, before I could really get anything done." He said this while adding sugar and cream to his teacup.

"And what did she say?"

"She said enough."

"So can I help you? With the potion?"

"Eventually."

Ginny crossed her arms.

"I had a talk with Ron."

She was hoping for some sort of reaction. He merely quirked his eyebrow and started to butter some toast.

"About you." The scraping of his knife slowed to a stop. His eyes looked up at her, darkly. For a moment, she thought he might be angry.

"And what did he say?" Ginny lowered her eyes to her tea.

"That he trusts you."

"And?"

"He said that Harry's vouched for you and that you're under some Oath..."

"So you finally have your answers, then."

"I want to hear about all this from you."

"Why do you care?"

"It's just - don't you think... I have a right to know?"

"Do you? That's rich. _I have a right to know_," he said, in a falsetto that she guessed was supposed to be her. She frowned.

"Well, I do -"

"Weasley, I know things that could turn your world upside down." She rolled her eyes at him.

"Right, Draco. I know about your Dark Mark. I know that you were a Death Eater, or were trying to be, or something of the sort. I know that you were supposed to kill Dumbledore," she said, a lump developing in her throat, "And I know that you failed at that..." She trailed off upon seeing the outraged look on his face.

"If that's all you know, then you couldn't begin to comprehend the truth."

"So, bloody hell, tell me!"

He dropped his toast and held his head in both hands, elbows resting on the table. He looked defeated.

He seemed to shake himself, and rubbed his face.

"Alright, Weasley. But I'm not sparing you of any horrid details. You want to know? You'll know the complete truth."


	8. Secrets

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Eight: Secrets

* * *

After bathing and dressing, they met in the parlor. It was just after lunchtime, but neither had an appetite. The room had been cold, so Ginny asked Draco to light the fireplace. Now its orange and red lights danced around the room.

Ginny settled herself on the sofa, feet curled underneath her, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders. Draco stood at the window, peering up and down the street. He shut the curtains and turned slowly to face her. When he did, she saw that the oranges and reds of the fire made him look very haunted. His face was the usual mask of blankness. He wore it so often.

"I received my Mark on July 31 -"

"That's Harry's birthday..." Ginny didn't know why she said it. He smiled at her, bitterly. He sat heavily into an armchair by the fire.

"How appropriate, then," he muttered, darkly, unrolling his sleeve to glare at the Dark Mark. "It was unavoidable. My father was a loyal supporter in the last war. It was a matter of pride for his only son to join the cause. So it was in my upbringing. It was in my blood."

He slowly pulled down the sleeve, and leaned forward. His head was turned to the fireplace, so she couldn't make out his face.

"I was made to believe that it was what I wanted. All I wanted," he continued. "Mudbloods - muggles - halfbloods, they are all inferior to us. We are pureblood. We are special. Magic is in our blood, our souls. It was something so special that those...that muggles couldn't even begin to imagine the powers we have." He relaxed and leaned back into the armchair, resting his hands on his knees. Ginny stayed silent, watching him carefully.

"These were the things I was taught. And I believed them. I still...I still...I just...I don't know what to believe anymore." He looked very confused for a moment, his eyebrow furrowed and he bit his lower lip. Ginny decided it was time to guide the conversation.

"So you got the Mark?"

"It was my Aunt Bella who really forced the issue. She convinced the Dark Lord that despite my age, I was worthy of his Mark," he said, "It was horrible. The pain was unbelievable. It was really at that moment, the moment that the Dark Lord was searing my skin to draw the Mark that I knew it all wasn't worth it. It was right then that I knew I did _not_ want the Mark."

His eyes lazily rose to look at her.

"As part of my induction, and as part of a punishment for my father's errors," he pursed his lips a moment before continuing, "I was given a task."

"To kill Albus Dumbledore?" Ginny felt tears prickling her eyes at the thought of the Headmaster.

"Kill him or my life was forfeit. And worse, he was threatening my family. My father..." his voice broke a little, but he continued, "My father was in Azkaban, safer than he could ever know. But my poor mother. She was all alone and the Dark Lord threatened to hurt her or kill her, if I didn't perform the task."

"And this was a surprise to you? That's how Voldemort works. Cruel and vindictive," Ginny scoffed. Draco glared at her, his face hardening a little. He sighed and turned his gaze back to the fireplace.

"My mother kept begging to me to find some way out. To run away."

"So why didn't you?" she asked, a little harshly. He looked at her, looking like a lost little boy, reminding her of the first morning she found him sitting at the kitchen table.

"I don't know."

* * *

"I knew I couldn't do it. I knew it. So I had this idea. If I couldn't do it - I'd help bring in those who could."

"Death Eaters. Into Hogwarts. Do you have any idea how dangerous that was? Innocent children -"

"Shut up! I know that now. I didn't realize there'd be such chaos! I just wanted them to come in and finish my task and be done with it. At that point, I couldn't care about anything but my mother. And stop interrupting me!" He looked furious. His mask was gone and he looked furious. She snapped her mouth shut and nodded.

"You can't apparate onto Hogwarts grounds. There were sure to be guards at all the entrances. Turned out to be Aurors. I even considered the lake, if you remember the Durmstrang ship. And then I remembered something."

"What?" she eyed him, warily.

"There was this cabinet at Hogwarts, everyone called it a 'vanishing cabinet' because you put something inside, and it disappeared. Someone, undoubtedly Potter, managed to shove Montague in there one year. He turned up ages later, in a toilet."

"What does that have to do with -"

"I remembered that I'd seen an identical piece at...a shop in London. I did a bit of research and found out they were a set. You put something in one cabinet, it appeared magically in the other."

"But you said that Montague was found in a toilet, not the set piece."

"Yes. The 'vanishing cabinet' was broken. And I needed to fix it. If I could fix it - it'd be the only way to get Death Eaters in."

Ginny watched his eyes. They were dancing with enthusiasm, excitement. He was so proud of himself, that'd he'd managed to figure this all out on his own.

"And I got the instructions to repair it. Took me all bloody year, working like a house-elf, but I managed it. I did it. I fixed it and they came. I'd made all the preparations, too. I bought some of that Peruvian Darkness powder from your brothers' shop. They have that secret catalogue of war goods. Lucky I got my hands on that catalogue, eh?"

Ginny glared at him. Someone certainly needed to have a word with the twins, she thought.

"And I had this lamp, the Hand of Glory. It would only shine light for the owner. My father bought it for me ages ago. I used to it to guide us through the Darkness."

"So what about Katie. And Ron? Wasn't that you? Weren't those your attempts at the Headmaster?" Draco winced visibly. He suddenly looked very ashamed of himself. He quickly hid it behind his blank mask.

"Yes. I don't know...I didn't know what I was doing. I suppose they were rather weak-hearted attempts. I spent most of the year repairing that stupid cabinet. I was hoping that if I managed to bring other Death Eaters into the castle, they could do it, they could do it in my place. One of them might have been able to kill Dumbledore. I don't know."

Ginny had listened as he explained how he'd isolated himself, trying to figure out harmless ways to show that he was making an effort. How he avoided Snape, because he knew that the Potions Master wanted to help with his task. How he'd used Madame Rosmerta. How he felt like it was happening, without his control. Like he was a marionette. He was helpless. His life and the lives of his parents were all at stake.

"The Headmaster...Dumbledore was a man who'd shown me nothing but kindness. He was so powerful and brilliant. And loony. Everyone respected him. Everyone feared him. Even the Dark Lord. And I, the hapless Draco Malfoy, was supposed to defeat him? Kill him? Simply on a command?"

He stood and start to pace again. He paused to put another log in the fireplace. He stayed knelt beside the fire and watched the flames a moment. Ginny sat forward, entraced.

"That night on the tower. I had him alone. He was lying against the wall, looking so old and so fragile. I'd cast a spell and his wand was lost. And I stood there, staring at him. The only one the Dark Lord feared. The only one who could possibly defeat the Dark Lord. He was at my feet. And I just stood there, hesitating. I don't know...I don't know what I was waiting for." Ginny strained forward to hear his words. He was barely whispering.

"He told me that I wouldn't do it. I wouldn't kill him. He knew I couldn't do it. I couldn't -" His voice broke and he lowered his head. She watched his back as he raised a hand to his face.

"I was standing over him, my wand pointed at his heart, and he wanted to discuss my options. And he said that the Dark Lord couldn't kill me if I was already dead. He was offering to hide me. Even my mother and eventually even my father. And for a while, I stood there hesitating and thinking. I was about to lower my wand and surrender to him when the door banged open. The Death Eaters finally reached the ramparts. And then I just froze. I just froze..."

* * *

After several long minutes, she watched him slowly stir. He stood up and turned to face her. Her eyes opened in shock as she watched him unbutton his shirt.

"What are you -" Her words died out when the white dress shirt was pushed back to his shoulders. She looked at the milky expanse of his chest. It was marred by a large pink scar. It was long and vicious. She stared at it in horror. Had Harry done this to him? With a shaky breath, she meet his eyes.

"I was in the loo. Minding my own business," he said, quietly, a little lost in thought. He touched the lower end of the scar gently and said, "Harry fucking Potter comes in and before you know it, both our wands are out, hexes flying. Instead of fighting fair, he used some spell I'd never heard of - and before I knew it I was on my back, bleeding to death. I don't know what happened after that, I woke up in the Hospital Wing with Madame Pomfrey fretting over me."

"He-he t-told us about it..." Her eyes went back to his scar. "He said you were crying." He was slowly pulling his shirt back on. His long fingers started to button it up.

"Bet he couldn't wait to brag about how he nearly killed Draco Malf -"

"He didn't brag about it. In fact, he regretted it, it was a mistake!"

"_It was a mistake_," he taunted, using that falsetto voice again. She narrowed her eyes.

"It was the first spell that came to his mind. And by the sound of it, you were about to perform an illegal curse on him - "

He looked at her carefully. He laughed that cold, bitter laugh again.

"You're right. Absolutely right. I am the dangerous one. I was about to cast the Cruciatus, when he did it to me."

She glared at him.

"But you see. There is a subtle difference, Ginevra. I wanted to hurt him. And he tried to kill me." Her glare softened as she thought about that. Harry had tried to kill Draco. But it was all a mistake.

"So then, why would Harry vouch for you? After all that?"

He looked away immediately, pacing the room again.

"You should ask Potter."

* * *

"So what about this Oath?"

"What about it?"

"Well, what is it?"

"It's a lot like the Unbreakable Vow, ever heard of that?" She shook her head. "That's when you make a vow to someone, a promise between two people, that cannot be broken - under penalty of death."

"So you've made a promise, like that?"

"No. Well, kind of. I swore an Oath of Allegience."

He was refusing to meet her eyes.

"So...what's that, then?"

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly frustrated. Ginny rolled her eyes and waited.

"You swear an oath - not quite a promise - but it tells where your loyalties lie."

"And your loyalties lie with the Order, I suppose."

"They do now."

"So this...Oath...does it override your Mark?"

"What? Of course. I mean, I made the Oath after, right?"

"So what if you made another Oath after the first and pledged yourself back to-"

"It doesn't work that way, Weasley! I've made the Oath - I can't back out or change my mind," he glared at his hands. And in an undertone, almost a whisper, he added, "And I couldn't swear it to the Order, exactly. The Order is sort of abstract. Over time, I had to try and focus it on a person. It doesn't matter who, as long as they oppose the Dark Lord."

"Harry, then?"

"Potter's an idiot," he scoffed, waving his hand airily.

"Oh. Well, then McGonagall? She's -"

"Hardly. I'd have sworn allegience to Dumbledore, but..."

"Yeah... Then who?"

His eyes flew to her face. She blushed at the intensity. Suddenly, the image of Draco slaving over ancient Potions texts came to her mind. She looked away.

* * *

"And this potion?"

"Thanks to Granger," he scowled as he said this, "I have a notion of what Potter is doing. This will help guide my research. I'm working on a potion now, it'll take a few days to prepare, and even then - I'm not sure..."

"Thank you, Draco." She leaned forward and tentatively put her hand over his. His hand was cold and his fingers were trembling. She pulled back her hand slowly and sat back. He watched her closely a moment before standing.

"It's late."

"That means you're done with me. Done sharing secrets?"

"Oh, no. Never," he smirked, watching her rise from the sofa. "I'll be needing your help with the potion soon enough. Til then, you can continue...knitting." A look of disgust crossed his face that made Ginny grin.


	9. Alright

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Nine: Alright

* * *

When Ginny pulled her dressing robe closer around her and pushed open the kitchen door, she was surprised to find it full of people. They were all quiet, almost ignoring each other.

Her mother was bustling about setting dishes on the table and waving her wand at the pans on the stove. Draco, fully dressed and each hair perfectly set, was sitting in his usual place, reading what looked like a letter. Tonks was nursing a cup of tea and Remus Lupin, across from her, was reading the Daily Prophet. Nobody looked up when she entered.

"Good morning, all," she said, stepping to her mum for a kiss. She sat next to Draco and helped herself to tea and toast. Draco just glanced at her and went back to his parchment. She tried to catch some of the words on the page, but he dragged the letter away from her, pointedly.

"Good morning, Ginny," said Remus, scratching his chin and setting aside the newspaper. He took a long, slow sip from his steaming coffee mug. Tonks ran a hand through her mousy brown hair while she kept her eyes riveted on Remus.

"Who's that from?" Ginny asked, nodding at the letter.

"My mother," he replied, folding the parchment, and putting it in his pocket. "Tonks here gave it to me. Her mother's been looking after her."

"Here you are, Draco dear, eat up. Don't want to keep Tonks waiting," said her mother, tipping eggs and sausages onto Draco's plate. He didn't say anything as he obediently shoveled the food into his mouth. Ginny looked on curiously, as her mother placed food on her plate.

"Where's he going, then, mum?" she asked, looking from Draco to her mum to Tonks. Tonks blinked, as though startled out of a reverie, and turned to Ginny.

"He's got some affairs to settle at his Manor. I'm escorting him," Tonks explained.

"I want to go, too!" Ginny exclaimed, "I'm tired of being cooped up here!"

"This isn't exactly going to be a pleasant visit, Weasley. I have business to attend to, and it's been decided that I need a chaperone," he glared at Tonks. Tonks stuck her tongue out at him.

"She is not your chaperone, Draco, she's an Auror and she'll be guarding you," Remus stated, keeping his eyes on his coffee.

"Can I go, Mum?" Ginny asked, looking at her hopefully.

"It's not my place to decide, dear."

She turned to Draco, barely opening her mouth, before he spoke.

"No, Weasley. You may not come," he said. He wiped his mouth with his napkin, and stood up. "I'm ready when you are," he murmured, addressing Tonks.

* * *

Ginny finished knotting the tassels on what was supposed to be Hermione's Christmas present. She tossed her needles into her basket and started examining the pink and maroon scarf. It was rather pretty, she decided, admiring it a moment, before tossing into the basket next to her chair.

Soon after Draco and Tonks had departed, Remus Lupin had left too. She'd helped her mum with some chores while listening to her try to make idle conversation. They fixed a simple lunch and soon her mum was kissing her cheek and telling her to behave and she was out the front door, with promises of returning soon.

She sat back and watched the flames dance in the fireplace, exhaling slowly. She swallowed a small lump in her throat as she thought about Harry. He was out there...doing God knows what. How long would it be before he'd face Voldemort? What if she – what if the potion... Ginny sighed and sat up straight. _Nothing is going to happen to me,_ she thought, _Draco will..._

She thought about how strange it was that she now called him Draco, even in her head. He was really no longer Malfoy. He was a different person, someone new. And yet, he was the same... it wasn't as though she ever really knew him before... perhaps he'd always been like this. Temperamental, intelligent, and... Ginny stopped herself from thinking 'handsome'.

Ginny stood and stretched. She checked her wristwatch. Nearly time for dinner, and no sign of Draco or Tonks. She knew she shouldn't worry, since he was with a trained Auror, but she couldn't help wonder what he was doing.

* * *

A loud clatter and the slam of a door stirred her from a soft sleep. She rubbed her eyes, noticing she was still in the chair by the fire, her knitting basket by her feet. She grabbed her wand from the table and walked to the foyer.

She saw Tonks trying to right the strange umbrella stand while Draco, arms laden with books and packages, swept past the two girls and up the stairs to his room.

"It's a good thing they managed to get down that horrid portrait, or we'd be having an earful right now!" Ginny said, smiling at Tonks.

"Wotcher, Ginny! I don't understand why we can't get rid of this stupid thing," Tonks gave the umbrella stand a kick, which knocked it over again with another loud clatter. Tonks hurriedly bent to right it again.

"How was your -" Ginny didn't finish her sentence.

Draco came storming back down the stairs, arms laden with ledgers. He brushed past Ginny with an angry glare and strode into the study. He slammed the door behind him.

"It went that well, huh?" Ginny asked Tonks, suppressing a smirk.

* * *

After seeing Tonks off, Ginny hesistantly eyed the door to the study. She knocked softly and listened for a response. There were soft sounds of movement inside - shuffling of books and rustling of pages.

"Draco?" She knocked again. This time she tried the doorknob and found it was unlocked.

There was a fire glowing orange in the fireplace and she stepped into the room to find Draco sitting at the desk, furiously taking notes and flipping through pages.

"Draco?" He turned to look at her, with a hunted look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

He stood up, throwing the quill down on his notes.

"It's gone. It's all gone." He ran his hands through his hair, pacing in front of the fireplace.

"What's gone? What happened?"

He walked back to the table, opening a ledger, skimming it with his finger. Suddenly, he slammed the book closed and threw it at the wall.

"The bastard spent money from my accounts as well. It's all gone."

Ginny just stood there, hovering near the door, unsure how to respond.

"How the mighty have fallen. The Malfoys hit rock bottom. Generations of riches gone," he ranted, as he flung himself onto a sofa. He seemed to collapse, his head hung low. She inched closer.

"Maybe there's just some accounting errors? You're sure you -"

"Of course I'm sure! There's no error! It's all fucking gone!"

"It'll be alright, Draco. There's no need to - "

"Please," he interrupted, smoothly. He looked up at her with a harsh glare. "I don't want pity, especially not from a Weasley."

"I – I - wasn't - " Ginny stammered.

"I don't want you to try and convince me that it's alright to be poor."

"Shut up, Malfoy - "

"Because it's not. It's not alright."

"I said stop it - "

"Just because your family seems to take pride in it, doesn't mean that it's - "

She strode forward and slapped him across his face. She could feel angry tears welling in her eyes. And not wanting him to have the satisfaction of seeing the poor, little Weasley cry, she ran from the room.

* * *

That night, Ginny found herself being shook awake. A harried looking Draco was leaning over her, checking her pulse, and watching her breathing.

"You were screaming."

"I know. I felt it again, just like before. Like something - "

"Breaking."

He offered her a glass of water. His entire demeanor was cold and closed. He refused to look her in the eyes. She felt another bout of tears threaten to overwhelm her. She took a shaky sip of water and handed back the glass.

As he turned to leave, she said, in a trembling voice, "I'm scared."

He stopped and turned to look at her. His face softened when he saw the tears rolling down her cheeks. He sat slowly in the chair beside her bed.

"Would you like me to call for your mother?"

"Draco, I - I'm sorry about earlier. I presumed too much. I shouldn't have..." Her voice trailed off, as he leaned over her again and gently wiped away her tears with his thumb.

"I'm going to call your mother."

Draco stood gracefully and walked to the door, without looking back.

* * *

It was only a few minutes later when Ginny's mum was cradling her daughter in her arms, whispering in her ear. Though Ginny wasn't crying, she clung to her mother, as though in desperate need of comforting.

"Oh, my love. It's ok, you're fine now. We won't let anything happen to you." Ginny was watching Draco, who was leaning against the doorframe, with arms crossed, observing this scene.

"It'll be alright, my dear. You'll see."

Ginny swore that at that instant, she saw Draco's face draw closed once again. He straightened himself and left.


	10. Dinner

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Ten: Dinner

* * *

The next morning, Ginny found herself eavesdropping at the kitchen door once again.

"What's the trouble, dear?" Ginny rolled her eyes upon hearing her mother addressing Malfoy as such.

He didn't bother answering her. By the scraping sound of silverware, Ginny guessed he busied himself with eating his breakfast.

"Have you - " Ginny's mum voice dropped to a whisper, and she strained to make out the rest of the sentence, " - made any progress for Ginny?"

"No, not as much as I'd hoped to. Maybe after she's done listening at the door, she'll be willing to help me with some more research."

Her eyes widened and before she could react, the door swung open, revealing her mother, looking rather scandalized, and Draco, who was twirling his wand in his hand.

* * *

Ginny was seated at the desk in the study, excited about finally being able to help with something.

Draco slammed a stack of books in front of her and handed her a sheaf of clean parchment.

"I've marked several of the chapters in these books and haven't had a chance to go through them thoroughly yet. I want you to make notes," he gestured to the quill and ink pot, "On anything relating to the mode of action of the potions' ingredients. Understand?"

She nodded and reached for the first book. _Noxious Elements for Innocuous Potions_.

As she opened the old text silently, she watched Draco settle himself in an armchair near the window, with a ledger in his lap.

She flipped to the first marked passage, and started skimming the page. When she reached for the quill, she glanced over to Malfoy. His white-blond head was backlit from the overcast day and his handsome face was concentrated on his book. She watched his eyes move back and forth across a page several times before he glanced back at her.

He arched his eyebrow and she quickly turned back to the task at hand.

* * *

Ginny balanced the tray on one arm while she opened the door to the study.

"I brought dinner. You want to take a break?"

Draco ignored her, as he continued to pour over the ledgers. She set down the tray on the table near the roaring fireplace and slowly approached him at the desk. She peered over his shoulder to see he was making many notes and calculations. She leaned over the back of his chair.

"Draco?" His shoulders tensed. And his movements stopped. "Would you like some dinner?"

He remained tense for a few moments. Ginny hesitantly placed a hand on his shoulder, and rubbed gently. He shivered under her touch.

"How does it look? Is it really all gone?" she asked. He finally set down his quill and rubbed his tired eyes.

"Well, there's barely enough money to cover all the debts my father incurred. He's been spending very negligently the past few years. Between bribing important Ministry officials and flaunting his wealth with parties and charities, there's hardly anything left."

Ginny settled her hands on his shoulders, as she tried reading some of the parchments.

"I am going to settle all the debts with the funds still left in the banks. There's no way I'm selling the Manor, it's been in my family for twelve generations, and it'll be mine as soon as...," his voice trailed off, "But I can at least sell all of the ridiculous dark artifacts he's collected - and take whatever money that fetches and give it to my mother, so she can settle herself in Paris."

"Is that where she is now?"

"Yes, with her sister. She's rather happy there." His voice was quiet, thoughtful.

"Do you miss her?"

"Yes. She's my mother." She lightly squeezed his shoulders. He turned to face her and she saw his eyes were red rimmed.

* * *

"Come and have some dinner. Please?" He nodded and stood. Ginny watched him stretch his 6 foot frame before striding over to an armchair near the fire. He sat stiffly, and looked to her, waiting to be served. He looked like a small child.

Ginny handed him a napkin, which he settled across his lap. She handed him his plate and pointed to his glass of wine. She settled down on the floor near his feet, facing him, letting the fire warm her back.

"Aren't you having any?" he asked, already forking a bite into his mouth.

"I'm not so hungry right now."

It was quiet a few minutes, as Draco ate and Ginny watched. He took occasional sips of wine that drew her attention to his mouth. She must have been staring at him openly, because when Draco finally set aside his plate, he smirked at her.

"If you're going to stare, at least close your mouth."

She blushed deeply and turned to face the fire. Before she could think of a reply, he said, "I'm sorry about those things I said yesterday."

She remained silent, not trusting her voice at the moment, and nodded her head.

"It just shows you what a spoiled brat I really am. I'd always imagined that my family had an endless supply of wealth. Of course, that would be the illusion my father was aiming for. God, he spent everything. All our family savings. Most of my savings. Gone," he paused, sliding from his chair to the floor next to Ginny.

He cleared this throat and continued, "It was just hard, accepting the fact that I have to count galleons and... make a budget. I just never imagined myself in this situation."

He wrapped his arms around his knees and looked at Ginny. She refused to look at him, keeping her gaze focused on the fire.

"I wanted to thank you, Ginny."

Finally she turned to meet his gaze. His silver eyes were sparkling as he reached for her hand. His cold fingers wrapped around her warm ones.

"For what?"

"For trying to comfort me. I didn't realize that's what you were doing, until I saw your mother..."

"That's what she always does. Wraps you up in her arms and just utters nonsense about everything working out. For some reason it always makes me feel better," Ginny concentrated on speaking to keep her hand from trembling. "Haven't you been comforted like that before?"

He tugged on her hand, pulling her closer. The lost look in his eyes told her his answer. She slowly pulled her hand from his grasp, wound her fingers around the nape of his neck and pulled his head to her shoulder. He relaxed against her, wrapping his arms around her waist. She felt him exhale against her neck and suppressed the urge to shiver.

"Say it, Ginny," he whispered against her neck.

"Say what?" she whispered, unable to stop herself from nuzzling her cheek against his hair.

"Tell me everything will all work out." His voice was so soft, that she barely recognized it belonged to Draco Malfoy.

She ran her fingers through the soft, silky hair at the base of his neck. "It'll all be alright, Draco. You'll see."

* * *

The following morning, a loud shriek and crashing sounds woke Ginny. She quickly threw her dressing robe around her shoulders and grabbed her wand. She jogged down to the kitchen, the source of the commotion. A strange site greeted her eyes.

Hermione was standing behind Draco Malfoy, examining a small cut over his eyebrow. Harry, who was sitting across from Draco, was looking on with an amused expression. Ron was furiously pacing, his arms crossed.

"What in Merlin's name..." Ginny stepped into a quick hug from Ron. She saw Harry eyeing her closely, as she went to the ice box and took out a cube of ice. She brought it to Draco, who placed it over his cut. Hermione sat down beside him and shot a silent glare over at Ron.

"Good to see you, Ginny. How are you holding up?" Hermione looked at her meaningfully.

"I'm fine. Had an incident the other night, but I'm sure you knew about that." Hermione nodded. Ron's anger seemed to cool for a moment, as he looked at Ginny with concern. Harry remained silent, watching Ginny stand behind Draco.

"What happened here? Anyone care to explain while I make us some tea?"

Hermione stood, and gestured for Ginny to sit.

"Have a seat, I'll do it," she said, as she prepared the tea setting. Ginny sat beside Draco, who was wincing dramatically, still clutching the melting ice cube to his forehead.

"It was his fault, he provoked me," Ron growled, crossing his arms again. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Yes, well, I thought we were all more mature than that, Ron," Hermione replied, as she distributed the tea.

Ginny reached over and took the ice cube from Draco and tossed it to the sink. "Quit being so overdramatic, it doesn't suit you," she said, pushing his teacup to him. "So what did you say to provoke my brother's wrath so early in the morning?"

Draco mumbled a bit, taking a sip of tea.

"He said that we must have the wrong house, and no, he's not interested in anything we're selling," Harry said, still looking amused as he stirred his tea.

"And that's when Ron clocked him one?" Ginny asked.

"Stop speaking about me as though I'm not here," Draco groaned, delicately fingering his wound.

"No, Ron lost his temper when he made some reference to you as a house-elf," said Hermione as she settled beside Ron with her own tea.

Ginny tried not to look hurt as she glanced at Draco from the corner of her eye.

* * *

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had come for an Order meeting, held later that night. After a long day, of playing peacemaker and reading about potions ingredients, Ginny settled in for a nice, relaxing bath. She dressed herself, and it was a few hours before dinner, when she heard the clatter of the umbrella stand and voices from the foyer.

Ginny went down to the kitchen, and when she saw her mother and father, she greeted them warmly with hugs and kisses. As her mum was fixing dinner, to be served after the meeting, she sat beside her father, wanting to catch up and hear some updates about the family.

He smiled and indulged her, telling her about Bill and Fleur and how Charlie was back in England for a bit, and when he slipped her a few sweets from his pocket, she noticed Draco, who was sitting in a corner, watching the entire encounter. She blushed when he smiled softly at her.

* * *

As she chewed a caramel, she watched Order members file into the kitchen, and when they were ready to begin, her father gently asked her to leave, with a promise of calling her when it was time for dinner. She noticed that she was the only one asked to leave, now that Harry, Ron, Hermione, and even Draco were Order members. She saw that Luna and Neville and several other former Hogwarts students were present were also present.

She was about to voice her complaints when her mother shot her a stern look, giving her all the encouragement she needed to prevent her from throwing a tantrum. Plus she saw Draco observing her, quietly, and she was not about to embarrass herself in front of him.

Reluctantly, she headed to the parlor, where a fire was blazing. She pulled out her knitting, and continued working on a green and blue scarf for her brother Charlie.

* * *

It was over an hour later, when she was staring blankly into the fire's flames, the knitting forgotten on her lap, that Harry came to call her for dinner. She watched him nervously make his way toward her.

While, Ginny put away her knitting, pushing the basket under a table, she saw Harry run his hands through his hair.

"Hermione told me about..."

"Oh. Right."

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Draco looks after me. He called for my mum that night."

"Oh, of course. _Draco_," his voice was full of spite.

"Well, he's been good to me. I wanted to thank you for vouching for him. He's going through a tough time."

"He called you a bloody house-elf! He was saying how well you take care of his needs or some tripe."

Ginny shrugged, not knowing how to reply. She wouldn't defend all of his actions, because though Draco has somewhat changed, he still needed to learn respect for others' feelings.

Harry scoffed and took a step closer to her, trying to appear nonchalant, though the tremors of his hands gave him away.

Ginny watched him struggle with something for a moment, and suddenly she found herself pulled flush against him with one of his arms tight around her waist and the other running through her hair. She froze.

He sighed and said, "Oh, Ginny..."

"Harry, what are you doing?" She tried to gently push him away, but he held her firmly, not willing to let go. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled.

"God, I've missed you," he tightened his grasp as Ginny struggled a bit, "I've missed this."

He tilted her head back, leaning his head forward for a kiss, when the door creaked open.

Ginny turned to see Draco standing with his hand on the doorknob. She struggled against Harry once again, trying to free herself.

"Time for dinner," he said, in a quiet voice, that had a sharp edge to it. She thought she saw his eyes flicker with hurt before he turned and stormed off.

She pushed herself away from Harry and ran to follow him.

* * *

She trailed Draco to the kitchen, where he entered and sat at his usual place at the table.

Ginny briefly noted that many of the Order had left. She pushed Fred over, so that she could have the place immediately next to Draco.

"I want to talk to you later," she whispered to him. He was scowling at his folded hands. She saw a muscle in his jaw clench.

"I don't need to hear it."

"Please," she said urgently, seeing Harry enter the room looking at her, confused. Draco shot him a glare, as he sat between Ginny's father and Ron.

Molly set the first plate in front of Draco with a kind smile, and soon dinner was underway.

"Draco, I wanted to thank you again for those spells that you gave Nymphadora. They've proven invaluable," called Arthur from the other end of the table. Draco lifted his head and nodded in reply. Ginny's curiosity was sparked.

"What spells?"

"When Tonks escorted Draco that day, to his house?" said Molly. Ginny nodded at her mother, who continued, "He gave her many books, full of ancient spells that the Death Eaters had been using. Gives the Aurors some foresight, so they can have counterspells prepared and such."

"Oh." Ginny turned back to Draco, who was focused on his dinner. She glanced around the table, trying to gauge others' reactions. They all seemed to know about this, most likely from the meeting.

Her father called down the table to Draco again. "Have you had much success in your potions research?"

Draco wiped his mouth with his napkin, and replied softly, "No, still working on it, I need to start brewing soon, before it gets to be too late," his eyes shot to Harry and narrowed. "Just need replacements for a couple ingredients."

"Perhaps Hermione can help you," suggested Lupin. Draco looked up at Hermione and shrugged.

She smiled encouragingly, and said, "I'd be happy to help you after dinner, if you'd like."

Draco nodded and returned his attention to his food. The others at the table started small conversations, laughing and smiling.

Ginny saw Harry watching her, carefully, while eating his dinner, and listening to her father.

Quietly, she turned her attention to her food, as well.


	11. Hexed

Something to Believe

* * *

Chapter Eleven: Hexed

* * *

Hermione was quietly reading a small stack of parchments that Draco handed her. He was leaning against the wall, watching her closely for any sort of reaction. And Ginny was settled in an armchair, with her knitting, listening to Ron and Harry.

"Merlin, it's nice to be here. It's almost like home, now it's been cleaned up," said Ron, tossing a ball of yarn to Harry. He caught it deftly and threw it back.

"Yeah. Besides, nothing beats a hot shower and a home-cooked meal, eh?"

"Right. But that couldn't be helped, really. Out there..." Ron trailed off, arm raised to throw the ball, glancing at Ginny. She resolutely continued with Charlie's scarf.

After a few moments of silence, Harry leaned forward in his seat and turned to Draco.

"Malfoy, I've been wondering something." Draco stiffened and turned his attention to Harry, who continued, "What about your Dark Mark?"

Draco instinctively grasped his left forearm. "What of it?"

Hermione looked up from the parchments and Ron turned a silent glare at Draco, dropping the yarn into Ginny's basket. Ginny focused, numbly, on her knitting, refusing to look up.

"Doesn't it react when Voldemort -"

Draco winced at Harry's use of the Dark Lord's name.

"Of course it does, Potter. It burns when he summons Death Eaters. It's especially painful when you don't answer his call. But after a few minutes, it sort of fades away, when the meeting starts."

"So, you know when meetings are being held. Based on your Mark?" Harry asked angrily as he stood, menacingly.

"Yes, I do know." Draco replied, his voice cut with irritation and barely contained anger. Ginny glanced up at his words. He crossed his arms defensively and pushed away from the wall.

"And you haven't told me about it?" Harry nearly shouted, taking a step toward Draco.

"It's not like you've been around for me to tell, have you, Potter? Did it ever occur to you that everything does not have to be about _Harry Potter_? Did you consider that I might have told McGonagall instead? Or Mr. Weasley, who's in a better position to do something about it, than _you_?"

Harry glared at him.

"So have you?"

Ginny watched Draco step towards Harry, towering a half a foot over him. "Have I, what?"

"Told McGonagall or Mr. Weasley!"

Draco stared down at Harry for a long moment. Hermione stood behind Draco, ready to react, and Ron stood as well, coming behind Harry. Ginny set aside her knitting and moved to stand between Harry and Draco. She faced Harry, calmly.

"Alright, that's enough," she said, gently, pushing Harry back a step.

"What if I told you that I haven't told them?"

Ginny whirled around to glare at Draco, exasperatedly.

"Oh for goodness sake, Harry, he's been telling Kingsley Shacklebolt, alright? Every time he gets a summons, he sends a Patronus to Shacklebolt," Hermione explained. "Now enough of this nonsense. You two - " she pointed at Harry and Ron, " - go play elsewhere, we have work to finish here," she waved her parchments, indicating their task.

Grudgingly, Ron and Harry left. Ginny stood in front of Draco, watching him carefully. He seemed to sag with relief, his eyes closing.

Hermione sat back down at the desk and shuffled through the parchments.

"How did you know that, Hermione? About Shacklebolt?" Ginny asked, looking from Draco to Hermione.

"Draco told me. Last time, when Ron and I came around."

Ginny watched Draco withdraw into himself, as he sat in the chair by the window, near the desk.

"I had no idea. You never said you were in any pain."

He shrugged. "Usually happens late at night, when we've both retired to our rooms."

"You never thought to mention it, otherwise?"

Draco frowned at her. "What's with you? You're acting like Potter."

"Well, I have a right to kn- "

"Stop saying that, because you don't have the right to know. You aren't in the Order. You're not meant to know things like that," he said through gritted teeth.

Hermione was observing them, the notes forgotten once again.

"Not - not -," Ginny sputtered, angrily, "Not meant to know - but - "

"Stay out of it! You are not to have any part of Order business, and that's final."

"Excuse me?" Ginny stood in front of him, arms crossed indignantly. "As soon as I come of age, I will do as I please, and my parents or brothers won't be able to stop me!"

"No."

"What do you mean, no?"

"I said, no. You will not be joining the Order." And Draco said it with such finality, that Ginny had no response. She simply spun on her heel and ran up to her room and slammed the door.

* * *

Soft humming woke Ginny in the morning. It was her mother. She was folding laundry, putting it away in the cupboard.

"Mum? You're still here?"

"Well, I stopped in early this morning. Was supposed to take Harry, Hermione, and Ron, to the Burrow last night. But Hermione was busy working with Draco most of the night, and your brother and Harry refused to leave her here with him alone."

Ginny sat up, angrily.

"And they aren't bothered about leaving me alone with him, are they?"

Molly smiled and kept folding.

"They're packing their things, we're leaving for the Burrow after breakfast."

"Can I come?"

Molly paused to look at her daughter. She sat on the edge of Ginny's bed and took her hand.

"Love, you need to stay here and help Draco with your potion. Hermione says that they made some major breakthroughs last night and it's finally ready to be brewed."

Ginny nodded silently, staring down at her quilt.

"I've just needed to get out. I'm so couped up here. I don't know when I last saw the open sky. I can't even remember what it's like to be on a broom."

Molly patted her hand and smiled.

"I suppose you can go out, time to time, but no further than the park down the street...and perhaps only if you take Draco, too."

"Aw, Mum," Ginny whined.

"Well, Draco's going out to the apothecary for supplies. Perhaps he'll let you come along."

"I doubt it," Ginny mumbled, picking out a dress to wear.

"And why is that? He'll have Tonks as an escort. It shouldn't be a problem."

"We had a bit of an argument last night."

"Is that so? Hermione mentioned something of the sort. She said that you'd be angry with him, though, not the other way around."

"Can you just ask for me? Please?"

"Fine, you get dressed and ready, and come on down. And bring your cloak, it's been cold lately."

* * *

When Ginny entered the kitchen, a cloak in her arms, she heard her mother asking Draco if Ginny could accompany him when he went out.

"No, I don't think so, Mrs. Weasley. She'd be a liability."

"I would not!" Ginny growled, as she plopped down across from him.

"Yes, you would. Besides I don't need your help with buying supplies. I know what we need."

"It's OK, Draco," Tonks, who was sporting a long, black ponytail, shrugged. She tucked her wand behind her ear and grinned, "I don't mind if she joins us."

"See, it's no problem. I'm coming," Ginny said, starting to shovel porridge into her mouth. Draco scowled at her.

Molly rummaged in her pocket a moment and withdrew a small pouch. She handed it to Draco with a meaningful look.

"From McGonagall," she said. He nodded and pocketed it. A few minutes passed in silence, while Ginny finished her food.

As soon as Harry and Ron entered the room, Draco stood, declaring it was time to go. While he and Tonks discussed modes of transportation, Ginny gave a quick hug and kiss to her mum. She hugged Ron and he kissed the top of her head. She pulled on her cloak, as Harry approached her. He hugged her lightly and pressed a kiss to her cheek.

She glanced at Draco, and she saw that he was watching her, his annoyance growing. She blushed and followed Tonks from the room.

* * *

"Here, Malfoy," Tonks handed him a black bowler hat and a pair of sunglasses. He mumbled and took them. He shoved the hat on his head and his hair changed from gleaming blond to jet black. He put on the sunglasses and if she hadn't already known it was him, she would not have recognized him.

"Just take my arm, and we'll be off," Tonks grinned at Ginny. "We'll see you there, Malfoy." He nodded and with a graceful turn, he was gone. Tonks spun as well, and Ginny felt the painful, uncomfortable squeeze that was associated with apparation.

She found herself in the courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron. She gasped for breath, while she looked up to see a dark and cloudy sky. The air was very still and felt cold against her cheeks.

"Looks like it might rain, we'll need to hurry," Draco said, as he tapped the bricks of the wall.

They walked quickly to the apothecary, and Ginny noticed that the streets were nearly empty.

"Do you think we can visit the twins' shop?" she asked, directing her question to Tonks.

"Don't think so, hon, I'm afraid this trip is strictly business, remember."

She nodded and tried to keep up with Draco's long strides.

He was already in the apothecary when Ginny and Tonks were just approaching the storefront.

Ginny watched as Draco silently pulled a piece of parchment from his pocket. He checked the list and handed it to the clerk. The clerk nodded and started arranging the supplies. He set a large, bronze cauldron on the counter, and started adding specific amounts of ingredients to small brown paper pouches. The pouches were placed in the cauldron, along with vials of strange colored liquids. The clerk referred to the list once more and added a few strange utensils and measuring cups.

Finally, the clerk handed a receipt to Draco and he paid using the small pouch from McGonagall.

Draco grabbed the handle of the cauldron and ushered Tonks and Ginny back onto the street.

"Now follow me, and stay close. We've one more stop to make."

* * *

Ginny had a sinking feeling in her stomach when Draco guided them around a corner, through an alleyway, and into Knockturn Alley. Tonks did not look surprised, but she kept close behind Draco, her hand buried in the pocket of her robe, most likely wrapped around her wand. Her Auror-trained eyes flitted everywhere, into every corner and shadow.

As Ginny struggled to keep up, she felt the first few raindrops on her face.

"It's starting to rain," she commented. Tonks smiled at her.

"Thanks for the weather report, Weasley," Draco replied, dryly, while covering the cauldron with his cloak. He turned a corner, shuffled past a strange-looking wizard and entered a small unlabeled shop.

Ginny noticed that when he stepped through the door, his hair had reverted back to blond. Tonks looked a bit worried, but quietly remained guard at the door. She looked up and down the small alley, and finally she turned her attention around the shop.

Ginny stood behind Draco at the counter, hiding against his tall frame. Draco removed his sunglasses, and placed a parchment on the counter.

"Ah, Master Malfoy, good to see you. It's always a pleasure to serve your family." The clerk said with an oily smile, as he picked up the parchment. He nodded and started to pack a few strange ingredients. He set a few items on the counter and smiled wickedly again, as he eyed Ginny and Tonks.

"Will you be needing anything else, Master Malfoy?" Draco shook his head.

The clerk held up a hand and went into the backroom. He came back with a small object in his hand.

"Perhaps something like this?" He held it out in front of Draco, and Ginny peaked around to see that it was a small, ornate dagger. Despite it's frail appearance, it was menacing...it's curvy double-edged blade seemed to gleam in the cold light of the shop. Draco stared at it for a long time. He finally shook himself.

"No, that will be all for us - And no need to send a bill, I'll be paying now," Draco said coolly, as he drew the pouch from his pocket. And Draco exchanged coins for the receipt the clerk handed him.

"Thank you for your patronage, Master Malfoy. Hope to see you again, soon." The clerk waved at Ginny as Draco stuffed the ingredients into his cloak pocket. Draco put a protective arm around Ginny and pushed her toward the door.

Tonks cast a charm over their heads, which helped a little in deflecting the rain. They made their way down the path, following Draco back to Diagon Alley. A flash of lightening and a loud clap of thunder made Ginny jump. She swore she saw several shadows shift.

"Something isn't right," Tonks whispered, tugging on Draco's sleeve. He slowed to a stop and Ginny huddled closer to him.

"What is it? Let's just get out of - " Before he could finish his thought, he was hexed from behind. He dropped to the ground, his bowler hat rolling away.

Ginny pulled out her wand, and shot a spell back at the shadow. The person collapsed with a shriek. Tonks fired another spell at them, and grabbed Ginny's arm and pulled her down into a crouch. She started fumbling with in the pocket of her robe.

"Oh, Merlin. I hoped it wouldn't come to this. Ginny grab his arm, and hold my hand." Ginny did so, just as Tonks withdrew a small package of Every Flavour Beans and muttered "Activo."

Ginny felt a shudder run through her body and a tight pull at her navel. When it stopped, she looked around. They were in the shade of a tree at a small abandoned muggle park, near the Order Headquarters. She watched as Tonks bent over Draco's unconscious form. He was still tightly clutching the bronze cauldron.

"Looks like a stunner. If we can get him back to Number 12, he'll be alright. Come on," Tonks handed the cauldron to Ginny. She took it and pulled it under her cloak. She watched as Tonks cast Ennervate on Draco's still form. He slowly stirred and clutched at his head.

"What happened? Where's Ginny?" he groaned as he sat up. Tonks helped him stand. Ginny's heart sped up slightly, hearing Draco ask for her so quickly and urgently.

"We need to get to Headquarters, it's just half a block, think you can make it?" He nodded and they quickly made it back to Headquarters.

* * *

Draco sat heavily at the kitchen table, unceremoniously dumping the potions supplies in front of him. Ginny knelt beside him and grabbed his wrist. While Ginny examined Draco's eyes and felt his pulse, he irritably tried pushing her hands away. She gave him a sharp glare, one that she'd learned from her mother, and he grudgingly grew still.

"I'm fine."

Tonks rushed about with fixing tea.

"Looks like that slimey clerk called for some back-up," Tonks said, and as she gestured a bit wildly, a teacup hit the floor with a loud crack. "Oh damn," she mumbled as she repaired it. "I should have suspected it when he disappeared into the backroom," Tonks finished.

Ginny sat next to Draco and reached for the supplies, intending to sort through them. His hand snaked forward and grabbed her wrist, stopping her.

"Don't touch any of that. I want Tonks to go over it first and make sure nothing is wrong."

Ginny nodded.

"Who do you suppose that was? In the shadows? Ginny got them pretty good with what looked like her infamous Bat-Bogey Hex," Tonks smiled, appreciatively as Ginny just shrugged. She saw Draco flinch involuntarily out of the corner of her eye.

"I just reacted. That's what came naturally."

Tonks sniggered. As she handed them each a teacup, she said "Well as far as everyone else is concerned, it was me that cast that spell, got it? Ginny's still underage, and we wouldn't want to get the Ministry started on that nonsense."

She proceeded to wave her wand over the supplies, particularly careful with the packages from Knockturn Alley.

"These look alright. Any idea who it might have been?" she asked Draco.

"It was definitely a Death Eater. They know by now that I've deserted them. Whoever it was, probably wanted to catch me and take me back to the Dark Lord as a prize."

"Well, I'm going back to see if they're still lying there. And I'm taking my partner to arrest that shopkeeper. He had several illegal enchantments around his shop..."

Tonks morphed into her usual appearance, sporting a mousy brown bob, and waved goodbye. She made her way back to the foyer, where they heard the familiar clatter of the umbrella stand. The front door slammed shut behind her.

* * *

Draining his teacup, Draco stood and gathered the supplies from the table. If Ginny hadn't been watching closely, she'd have missed him swaying slightly.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

He shrugged and started shakily for the door.

Ginny jumped from her seat, putting the teacups in the sink. She ran to follow.

"I wanted to talk to you," she said as they entered the study. With a wave of his wand, a fire burned slowly in the hearth.

"So talk."

He set about clearing the desk of parchments, quills, and books. He arranged them all, except for the stack of papers that Hermione had been looking over, and levitated them with his wand, sending it to a nearby bookshelf.

Ginny watched Draco arrange the contents of the cauldron. He took inventory, seeming to organize the ingredients in the order they were needed in the potion.

Suddenly he sat down, with a groan, and rubbed his temples.

"Headache? That's a usual side effect of a stunner," Ginny said. "Want me to go find you a potion for that?"

"No. I'll get it," he stood slowly and swayed. She saw a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead.

"Why don't you sit a minute? I'll go grab it."

She ran up the stairs to the attic and rummaged in the cupboard. She found the appropriate vial and brought it back down to the study.

Ginny returned to find Draco's face was gray and he was slumped slightly in his chair. She handed him the potion and he drank the dose slowly.

A few moments passed, and the color returned to his face. He sighed and handed the empty vial back to Ginny.

"I wasn't such a liability today after all, was I? I managed to save your arse back there." Ginny couldn't help but gloat. Draco looked up at her with tired eyes. He shrugged.

"I wouldn't be so excited. That clerk saw you and word will get around that I was seen in Knockturn Alley with a Weasley."

"Worried about soiling your reputation, are you?" Ginny asked, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes at him.

"More worried about soiling yours, Weasley. Think about it. The little Weasley girl was seen with Draco Malfoy. They'll probably try locating you to see if you could lead them to me."

"The Burrow! And we have to warn my parents!"

"Don't be daft. Your house is protected. Nobody would be able to find the place. And your parents will be fine... they know what they're doing."

Ginny nodded. She leaned against the wall, her arms still hugging herself.

"Are you starting with the potion now?"

"I can't. Still waiting on some ingredients. They'll be arriving this evening, I imagine."

Draco reached for a stack of parchments and started shuffling through. A few minutes passed in silence.

"Listen, I wanted to explain about Harry -"

"I certainly do not need to hear it. What you do with your boyfriend -"

"Harry's _not_ my boyfriend. Not anymore. He ended it, quite inappropriately, at Dumbledore's funeral," she scowled at the memory.

Draco seemed to ignore this and continue shuffling through the parchments.

"And I don't know what he thought he was doing last night. First he calls our relationship off, disappears without telling me what he's even doing, and then he comes back and wants to resume as if nothing happened. Anyway, I was trying to keep my distance from Harry. I just wanted you to know that."

"Whatever, Weasley. I don't care to know about your love life. Or lack thereof. I have work to do."

"I thought you said you couldn't start until you get the rest of the -"

"I know what I said. Would you just stop hovering about? Go... knit, or something."

Ginny narrowed her eyes and pushed off the wall. She stood with her hands on her hips, reminiscent of Molly Weasley.

"I'll have you know that I will not be cast aside like that. I only knit to pass the time, not because it's all I can do!"

"You said it yourself, Weasley, you aren't allowed to use magic. So for now, knitting is all you can do. And a fat lot that'll help the war effort."

"But when I turn of age -"

"With any luck, when you turn of age, the war will be long over."

"You're forgetting the fact that I saved your life today!"

"If you're out to prove that you can fight, then yes, I already know that, Weasley." He flung the parchments onto the desk and stood to his full height. He loomed over her, narrowing his gray eyes. "I remember what it's like to be on the receiving end of your wand."

"Good! And don't you forget it!"

"I thought you didn't want to fight in this war, in the first place!" Draco growled.

"Well, I don't," she replied, softening her expression. Ginny didn't think he'd remember something like that. "But I also hate being useless. I hate feeling helpless!"

"You're helping me with this potion. Need I remind you, the one that's been designed specifically for you. I hate to admit it, but I wouldn't have been able to finish the recipe if it weren't for Granger. She helped me finalize the potion. And you're going to help me make it."

"Why are you doing this for me?"

"Who said I was doing it for you?"

"Well it's certainly not for your own selfish needs, is it?"

He shrugged, gracefully. "I just realized that it was something that needed to be done. And I was the one to do it."

"Why a potion? Why not a spell?"

"A spell's effects have a sudden onset and usually the effects disappear. A potion can run deeper, affecting your whole body, and depending on the potion, the effects can be permanent."

"And you'll be able to permanently remove traces of Tom from my soul? Without hurting me?"

Draco looked at her for a long second, seeming to take her in completely. "That's right. Without hurting you. By the way, that was the tricky part. And that's the part where Granger was able to help me."

"I'll have to thank her, then," Ginny mumbled, while rolling her eyes.

The front door slammed open and closed, and even from the study, they could hear loud laughter echoing through the house.

"Ah, that'll be them with the ingredients."

"Who?"

"The twins."

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks for the reviews! God, I love those reviews!


	12. Daydream

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twelve: Daydream

* * *

Ginny ran to the foyer and ignoring the fact that both of her brothers were extremely laden with parcels, she launched herself at them, an arm around each of their waists.

"Fred! George! My favorite boys, am I glad to see you!"

"Do you hear this girl, George? She saw us yesterday and completely ignored us. And now look, pretending she likes us, so we'll give her treats."

"Excuse me," Ginny stood back with her hands on her hips. The twins headed to the study, acting affronted. Ginny followed. "But you two were too busy with Order business to even look my way! Besides I wanted to catch up with Daddy."

"_Catch up with dad-dy_!" mimicked Fred, in a high-pitched voice. Much to Ginny's chagrin, it sounded a lot like Malfoy's impersonation of her.

"I do not sound like that," she cried, stomping one foot.

"Malfoy, here are the things you asked for," said George, handing him a wooden crate, tied up in twine. And Fred rummaged in his pocket a moment, before withdrawing a small paper-wrapped packet.

"And this is from Longbottom," he said, handing it to Draco.

"You run into any trouble?" Draco asked, looking at the twins meaningfully.

"Well," George started, with a sideways glance at Ginny, "The shop's being guarded by Aurors. Haven't had any disturbances, though we noticed a few shifty looking gents hovering about the storefront."

"You mean because of what happened with us in Knockturn Alley?" Ginny asked.

"Word is getting around that Draco Malfoy was seen today with two women, one of them a red-haired freckle-faced Weasley," Fred said. "Fortunately Tonks wasn't recognized, or she'd be locked up in here with you two." Ginny rolled her eyes.

"What's all the rest of this?" Draco indicated the boxes and shopping bags they were holding.

"Well, Tonks told us that ickle Ginnykins wanted to visit the shop," said George.

"So, as good brothers should, we packed up some of our finest products and decided to bring them around to cheer up our ickle baby sister!"

"Who said I need cheering up, then?" asked Ginny, laughing, as she peered into a box in George's arms.

"Mum did. And Tonks. And Dad. Well, you get the picture. We hear you've been knitting, for Merlin's sake!" said Fred, looking aghast.

"See! That's how bored I've been. Now please tell me you've brought me at least _some_ candy that's edible," she rummaged in a small shopping bag that was dangling from Fred's pinky.

"Could we dump this junk in your room? It's just a tad heavy," groaned Fred.

"Just a smidgeon," murmured George, as he watched a small box fall from the top of the stack he held in his arms.

* * *

Fred and George were settled comfortably on her bed, while Ginny, sitting on the floor, surrounded by boxes, bags, and packages, looked through the things they brought for her.

"A Daydream Charm?" She looked at the box, slightly apprehensively.

"It's our newest version. It's rather good," George said, waggling his eyebrows. Ginny laughed.

"Besides you can use it when you want to tune out Malfoy," Fred suggested. He leaned over and grabbed a large cloth sack. He handed it to her. "This was from Mum. Just some stuff she baked, and a few of your clothes, like you asked."

"You got some parcel by owl, Mum put it in there," added George, motioning to the bag.

"Oh, must be from Colin. He promised he'd send me some pictures from our times at Hogwarts," replied Ginny, finding the package and opening it. She was amazed to see that he had arranged the magical photos in an album. Fred snatched it from her hands and started flipping through it.

Ginny pouted and turned to the rest of the contents of the sack. George leaned back on an elbow and grinned at her, wickedly.

"You'll notice that we included some of our favorite pranks..."

Fred piped in, "You know, to use on Malfoy..."

"Because whether or not the git's on our side..."

"He'd deserve everything you throw at him."

Ginny looked up to see the matching devious smiles on the twins' faces.

"I'm not starting a stupid little prank war. Besides, he'd tell Mum on me!"

They looked mightily disappointed.

"And it'd be rather obvious who did it - I'm the only one in the house!"

"You can try out some of the subtler things - change his hair to Gryff colors and see how long it takes him to notice."

"Or slip a Babbling Potion in his drink and blackmail him with stuff he blurts out!" suggested Fred.

"Come on, Ginny, we thought you were one of ours! Besides if Mum ever finds out, we give you permission to blame it on us," continued George.

"Well, I guess if something strange were to find it's way into his morning tea...it wouldn't be so wrong..."

The twins grinned at her. George pretended to wipe away a tear, as Fred said, "That's our girl!"

Ginny picked out a large chocolate bar from the pile of candy. She inspected it closely, and looked at the twins. George merely shrugged, and Fred suggested they share it. She split that bar into three and offered her brothers each a piece. She watched them each take a bite, before doing so herself.

"So, what'd you bring for Draco?"

"He asked for some potions ingredients. Just a couple of rare things that you can't get on Diagon Alley," answered Fred, through a mouthful of chocolate.

"Things you can't get in Knockturn Alley either?"

The twins exchanged an uncomfortable look and remained silent.

"I see. I wonder if I should be telling Mum about this conversation."

"Please, Ginny - it's bad enough as it is!" muttered Fred.

"After our fiasco with the Instant Darkness Powder..." George started and Fred murmured "Damn that devious bastard Malfoy." George continued, "We're supposed to be more careful about selling our wares."

"Not to mention the fact that the Order has asked us to make each of our products with some sort of 'backdoor' in them."

"That way, if we find that our enemies -"

"Death-Eaters," said Fred, rolling his eyes and using his fingers to quote in midair.

"- are using our goods, the Order will have a way of deactiving them."

"Pretty clever, actually. It was Hermione's idea."

"And since only Order members get to know the backdoor spells, they can still use the products without worrying -"

"Wait - what about me?" cried Ginny, indignantly, cramming the rest of her chocolate in her mouth.

"Well, shouldn't be a problem for you, little sis," said Fred, grinning.

"As you aren't allowed -"

"- out of the house -"

"- ever again!"

"Problem solved!" The twins said this together, high-fiving each other, as if her house-arrest was their idea.

"I swear, everyone's out to baby me!"

"Well, you are the baby!"

"I'm 16, for Merlin's sake!"

"Be that as it may, Ginny-girl, you are too precious to be involved in all this war nonsense," said George, with a rare look of sincerity on his face.

"We know that you can defend yourself, hell, you've proven that dozens of times, but we love you too much -"

"- to simply let you run around during wartime."

"If anything were to happen to you - I don't think I could ever smile again!" Fred laid back in her bed, throwing his wrist to his brow, feinting a faint.

"Honestly!" Ginny chucked the Daydream Charm package at Fred and laughed when it hit his forehead. He sprang from the bed and soon both twins wrestled her to the ground and proceeded to tickle her.

"Oh, god - Help! Help me!" she shrieked, struggling to breath and laughing all at once.

Ginny was sure she was about to wet herself, when her bedroom door slammed open. The twins ceased their attack, and the three of them looked up from the floor. Draco was standing in the doorway, looking furious, with his wand drawn. He hesitated a moment and slowly lowered it, scowling.

"Oh for Merlin's sake, I thought you were in real trouble."

"I was!"

And with that, the twins continued their assault, causing Ginny to scream out. Fred was holding back her arms while George mercilessly wriggled his fingers on her stomach. She started kicking about, yelling for them to stop. Draco stood, fixated, watching with a look of disgust on his face.

"Please - help me!" Ginny cried when George's hands went to her armpits. Fred threw a bored look over to Draco.

"We'll be with you in a mo', Malfoy. Business to take care of, you see."

Ginny managed to wriggle away from Fred's grip while he was distracted. She crawled on the floor, near Draco's feet, gasping for breath. She used the door frame to help her stand.

"Oh sweet Circe," she sighed, slumping forward to catch her breath. She pulled the elastic from her hair, freeing the completely messy ponytail.

The twins stood up, dusted themselves off, and turned their attention to Draco, who was staring down at the girl beside him as though he'd never seen her before. His brow was furrowed and they could make out a small smile on his lips.

"Malfoy, if you're through staring at our baby sister -" Draco was startled by George's words and looked up at the twins, swallowing.

"- we'll bid you adieu!"

Draco watched as Fred ruffled Ginny's hair. She watched him disdainfully, as this was fairly normal procedure, a common way any Weasley boy might say goodbye to his little sister.

"We have to head back to the store now to close up. Poor Verity must be swamped. Now you behave yourself, Ginevra!" Fred said, attempting a frown worthy of McGonagall.

"Bye, Malfoy," George said, while wriggling his fingers through Ginny's hair, messing it up even further. "Send us a message, if you need anything, don't hesitate."

They both shuffled past Draco, who was leaning against the door frame, once again looking down at Ginny. She could hear the twins whispering to each other all the down the stairs, and finally the front door was opened and closed, leaving the house in an awkward silence.

Ginny reached up, and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to tame it down. She heard Draco snort under his breath.

"What?"

She walked over to the pile of things on the floor, dropped to her knees, and started to arrange them.

"Nothing," Draco whispered, turning away and heading back down the stairs.

* * *

Ginny knocked softly at the study door and pushed it open. She had a bar of chocolate in her pocket, her knitting in one hand and her new photo book in the other. She expected to see Draco by the desk, chopping this or grinding that. Instead, she found the deskchair empty and the room to be darkened, only a low red glow coming from the fireplace. She nearly turned back to venture to the kitchen, but she saw his outline sitting on the hearthrug.

She approached him, quietly, and joined him next to the dying embers in the fireplace. He was staring silently at his Dark Mark and hastily pulled down his sleeve while she set aside her knitting and her album and pulled out the candy.

"You want some?"

"Is it safe?"

"One way to find out," Ginny said, smiling and offering him half the bar. He eyed the chocolate carefully and waited until she swallowed her first bite before nibbling slowly.

"What are you doing in the dark?" she asked, pointedly. She heard him swallow and his eyes went to the small silk rug underneath them.

"Thinking."

"Well, good for you! Never too late to start," she grinned at him, shoving the rest of the chocolate into her mouth and pulling her knitting into her lap. She'd started working on a scarf for Bill - a red and black combination.

Draco continued sitting dejectedly beside her, the chocolate between his fingers forgotten.

"Ok, sorry," she shrugged, "I'm supposed to ask what you were thinking about. So what - "

"I don't want to talk about it right now."

Ginny stabbed herself with one of her needles and groaned. "Merlin, I can't even see what I'm doing..."

Draco stirred, and a sideways glance told Ginny that he was reaching for his wand. He waved it and the fire seemed to roar with life. The sudden heat made her wiggle a few inches back.

"That better?" he asked, still staring morosely at the rug.

"No," she set aside her knitting. "Tell me what's bothering you?" Ginny turned to face him, she leaned back and supported herself with one hand. And she waited, allowing him time to say whatever he wanted. A few minutes passed in silence, and just when her mind started to wander, he spoke.

"I was just thinking about how you act with your brothers."

"Oh?"

"And I was just wishing that I had a relationship like that with someone. Unconditional love and all that nonsense."

"You have your mum," she suggested, hopefully.

"Yes. In a way. But she'd never acts like that – I mean she loves me more than anything and she does everything to show it... but it's never as open as..."

"You have my mum," she added. "She's taken a quite a liking to you."

"And how do you figure that?" he asked, gracefully lying back on his elbows, his pale pointed face looking up at her lazily. Ginny couldn't help but admire the view.

"Well, the fact that she does your laundry. And that she always serves you first during meals - plus she makes sure you have seconds _and_ thirds."

"That doesn't mean that she likes me - "

"It does. If she didn't like you - you'd be doing your own laundry. And she wouldn't be forcing me to cook your meals - she'd be making you fend for yourself. Besides, she really must like you if she'd _want_ her only daughter to stay here with you."

Draco smiled as he considered that.

"I think you remind her of Harry, in a way."

Draco gaped at her a moment before sitting up straight. "What!"

"No, really! I think you seem like a lost little boy to her, at times."

"Well...obviously she...but..." he sputtered, his voice trailing off.

"Yeah, that," Ginny grinned, pointing at his face. He smirked at her. "That was it, right there. That look always gets right to the heart of my mum," Ginny sighed.

"I am not a lost little boy!" Draco seemed to find his voice, along with his indignation.

"You going to eat that or what?" Ginny looked down to see the chunk of chocolate was smushed between his index and thumb. He looked at it, wrinkling his nose.

Acting without a thought, Ginny grabbed his wrist and guided the candy to her mouth. She took a big bite and chewed. Draco was frozen with a look of shock and horror on his face.

"What?"

"You..."

"What? It's melting, you better finish it now. It's rather good."

Ginny's breath hitched in her throat when she saw the way he continued to eye the candy in hand. His eyes trailed up to her slender fingers around his wrist. Her hand looked so small compared to his. He blinked slowly and brought his eyes to her lips. She licked them self-consciously, and saw his gaze intensify.

Not quite knowing where the burst of courage came from, she lifted his wrist again, taking another bite, and then moved the chocolate to his lips. He popped the rest of the candy in his mouth.

"It is rather good," he murmured, hoarsely, licking his fingers, his cool gray eyes not leaving her face. Ginny felt her mouth go dry, her eyes glued to his lips and his tongue flicking across this thumb.

She gently pried her fingers from his wrist, and they suddenly felt rather cold without the contact.

Finally managing to avert her eyes, she looked down beside her at the album, and idly running her fingertips across it, as she slowed down her breathing.

"What's that?" His deep voice rumbled near her ear, nearly a whisper. He was pointing at the album, and with a swift motion of his fingers, he gestured for Ginny to hand it over. She didn't think to disobey him.

Draco heaved a soft sigh, and from her proximity, she could nearly taste the chocolate on his breath. She felt herself blushing against her will. Thankfully, he was rather distracted looking through the album.

He flipped several pages, looking bored. They were mostly pictures of her. Starting from second year, all the way through her fifth.

"Oho!" he said, pushing the book into her hands. "Who's this handsome devil?" Ginny tilted her head, leaning in to take a look.

It was a picture of the Gryffindor quidditch team after a game. They had their arms draped over each others' shoulders, Ginny was by far the smallest, standing beside Ron, who towered over her, his arm around her shoulders. She was grinning and waving - they'd won that game.

In the background, where Draco was pointing, was a familiar blond boy, dressed in green quidditch robes, who was making funny faces. Ginny looked up at the real Draco Malfoy to see him making similar faces. She laughed.

"I know that cad - would you like an introduction?"

"I'd like to meet this little blossoming flower here," he said.

She looked down to see his finger pointing at the image of herself. The Ginny in the photograph, in her dirty quidditch robes and clutching her ancient hand-me-down broom, brushed the hair back from her face and blushed.

"You're quite the charmer," she whispered, as he smirked and took the book back. He continued flipping through pages, pouring over each picture, seeming to take in every detail.

"What're your favorite colors, Draco? Besides green and silver. And not black," she said, picking up her knitting again.

"Why, you going to make me one of those scarves? Honestly, I'll likely never leave this house again, so bloody good it'll do me," he said, slamming the album shut and stretching to put it on the table behind him.

"I could make you some socks," she suggested - "Or maybe I could figure out how to make a jumper..."

"No, thank you. I'll pass on the scratchy wool."

"Well, I have no idea what to give you for Christmas," she sighed, tugging at the tangled red yarn.

"That's not for ages. And you don't have to get me anything."

"Hmm, we'll see, I guess."

"And certainly don't expect much from me. With my new budget and inability to go out shopping..." his voice trailed off and he silently stared into the flames.

After a few moments of silence, Draco yawned widely. He stood and stretched, drawing Ginny's eyes from her knitting. A flash of pale skin was exposed when his shirt rode up his stomach. He rolled his shoulders and straightened up, turning his cool, gray eyes to her.

"I'm going to bed. We'll start working on preparing the ingredients tomorrow. And don't touch anything in the ice box. I've put a few things in there to chill."

"Alright. I guess I'd better go to bed, too," Ginny tossed her knitting on a table and reached for the album. "Would you mind putting out the fire?"

And with a spell, the room was completely dark. Instinctively, Ginny reached out, blindly, and her fingers brushed across Draco's arm. She grabbed it tightly and let him guide her from the room.

"I meant on our way out, you prat," she muttered. She heard his soft laugh just as the passed through to the foyer. A dim bluish light shone in from the window and as Ginny's eyes adjusted to the darkness, she was able to make out his tall profile.

He cast Lumos and they started up the stairs together.

"Good night," Ginny called, watching Draco enter his room from her doorway.

"'Night," he answered, closing his door softly.

* * *

After brushing her teeth, washing her face, changing into her white nightdress, and brushing her long hair for about fifteen minutes in front of a mirror, Ginny still couldn't get the flash of Draco's stomach, the feel of his biceps, or his husky voice out of her head. She decided that she should try to get some sleep.

She padded to her bed, and pulled back the covers. She gasped.

On her crisp faded pink sheets, lay a small colorful box. A Daydream Charm, specialty item from Weasley Wizard Wheezes. Ginny groaned, picking it up, remembering throwing it at Fred. She crawled into bed, and pulled the covers up to her waist. She spun the box idly, in her hands.

"Oh, why not," she whispered, opening it quickly.

* * *

Oh. George was right. This is quite nice.

Ginny was flying on a broom, her hair streaming behind her, over a field of purple and orange wildflowers, the afternoon sun warming her skin. She sped up, did some turns and loops, relishing in the realistic feeling.

She spotted something golden gleaming in the light, in front of her. A snitch! As Ginny reached forward to grab it, something zoomed by - a blur of green - and the snitch was gone. Disappointed, and curious, Ginny searched for the green blur.

It was off to her left, moving fast, towards the ground. She followed.

Her bare feet touched the ground, and she was buried to her knees in flowers. Ginny looked down to find herself clad in a light sundress. She dropped her broom.

A few feet away was a man, his back turned to her. She reached forward and grabbed his green cloak. He spun around, the cloak falling from his shoulders.

His white-blond hair shone brightly in the warm sunlight, a golden halo around his face. He was smiling, his lips spread wide, his striking gray eyes crinkling. He was relaxed and happy and glowing. He looked extraordinarily handsome, dressed in a simple white oxford shirt and jeans.

"Draco?"

He grinned wider, and he held up the snitch between his fingers.

"Looking for this?" he laughed.

She smiled and reached for it, and he held it just out of reach. It felt oddly familiar to her. Laughing, she reached out again, and he held the snitch high above his head. Her hands trailed up his chest and up his arm, as far as she could reach on tiptoe.

He turned, pulling her closer to him. She gave a small jump, brushing against his body, making another attempt for the snitch. Another small jump sent them tumbling to the ground, both of them laughing, surrounded by walls of wildflowers and grass.

Ginny landed, straddling him, her long hair covering his face. She brushed back the strands to find him looking up at her.

Slowly, the smile dropped from his face, and he stared at her a moment, before wrapping his arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him.

Dropping all pretenses, snitch completely forgotten, Ginny reached to the nape of his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. Their lips meet briefly; both of them, shocked by the contact, pulled away. Draco buried his hand in her hair and raised his lips to hers, firmly and possessively, and he growled into her mouth...

* * *

It was about twenty minutes later when Ginny's eyes refocused. She was panting and blinking rapidly. She brushed back the hair from her face, and looked down at the torn package in her hand with wide eyes, her mind racing with images from the daydream.

When her breathing was finally even, and sleep about to take her, she wondered if there were any more Daydream Charms in the piles of products on her desk.

Her eyes closed and her last thoughts were of purple wildflowers and snitches.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks for the all the supportive reviews!

If you haven't already, PLEASE REVIEW!


	13. Song To Sing

**Something to Believe**

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: Song To Sing

* * *

Ginny opened her eyes slowly. She stretched and sighed, blinking against the morning light. She pulled herself reluctantly out of her warm bed and pulled on her dressing gown, which did little against the chill of her room.

She shuffled down the stairs and opened the door to the kitchen, expecting to find a bed-headed Draco waiting for something to eat. Instead, he was sitting at the table, fully dressed with his hair set, eating a bowl of cereal, and pouring through a thick tome.

"You're finally up! We have a lot of work to do today. Make us some tea," he said, not looking up from his book.

Ginny rolled her eyes at the direct order, and set about making the tea. Behind his back, she mimed hitting him over the head with the tea kettle. She sobered quickly when she saw the box of cereal on the table, reminding her of a morning full of laughter - and also her daydream, with the snitch.

By the time she set a teacup in front of Draco, he'd emptied his bowl, and with a wave of his wand, he sent it to the sink. Ginny looked on, jealously, as she sipped her own tea. She raked her fingers through her hair, acutely aware that she looked disheveled, sitting across from him, with his hair gelled, his cashmere turtleneck sweater, and his pressed pants.

He closed his book and caught her looking him up and down. He smirked and raised an eyebrow.

"You're pretty good with a knife, right?"

"I suppose."

"Then those ginger roots in the icebox should be no trouble. I'll show you what needs to be done. And mind, you have to freeze them again when you're through slicing them. They need to be iced for 10 days."

She nodded.

"And after that, you could start grinding some moonstone. We need a sizable amount of absolute fine powder, so that might take a while. I'll also be working on the dragon eggs and hellebore, meanwhile."

"Dragon eggs? Where'd you - "

"The twins, useful blokes. Seems they have a connection in Romania," Draco snorted, smirking at Ginny meaningfully, over the brim of his teacup.

After the breakfast dishes were cleaned and put away, Draco cast several cleaning spells on the counters and on the table. He handed Ginny a pair of soft leather gloves. As she pulled them on, he went to the icebox and took out a large sack.

"Use this cutting board, and this knife," he indicated each. He withdrew a root from the sack and set about peeling it. The fresh scent of ginger assaulted Ginny's senses. She watched him carefully make several slices, producing paperthin sheets of ginger.

"Think you can handle that?" She nodded and took the knife from him, her gloved fingers barely brushing against his. She hoped she wasn't blushing.

While she took up the task of peeling and slicing, making slow careful work of it, she heard Draco rummaging through the pots and pans. She paused in her work, and turned to look.

"What're you looking for?"

"I need a large pot, something heavy," he said, moving to the stove and kindling a steady flame. Ginny gestured to the cupboard next to the stove. He opened it and, after a moment of rearranging the cookware within, he withdrew what he needed.

Ginny turned back to her roots, as he set the large pot on the stove, and with a spell, filled it with water. He left the room, and within a few moments, he returned, clutching several packages, including the wooden crate the twins had brought.

He set them on the table, and started opening them carefully. From the crate he withdrew several large green eggs. He checked each one, about twelve or so, and set them on the counter beside the stove. He checked the boiling water and lowered the green eggs into the pot.

Ginny watched him sit back down at the table. Draco pulled on dragonskin gloves and take a bundle of purple flowered herbs from one of the packets. He inspected them closely and started dissecting each plant gently with his fingers.

"What're those?" she asked, a bit startled seeing the wildflowers in his hand.

"Hellebore. Bit poisonous, so I'd better do this carefully, if you don't mind," he answered, focusing on the blossoms.

They worked slowly and quietly for most of the morning. The silence of the room was broken only by Ginny's knife hitting the cutting board, and the occasional deep tuneless hum from Draco's throat.

* * *

"Do you always hum when you work on potions?" Ginny was setting a plate of sandwiches between them in the study. She handed him a glass of juice.

"Only when I'm alone," he answered.

"And what am I, then? Bubotuber pus?"

He smirked at her, reaching for a sandwich.

She rolled her eyes and took a bite of her sandwich. She chewed slowly, frowning at the lingering smell of ginger on her fingers.

"Bet you can't wait to get out of here, eh?" she asked, watching his face expectantly.

"Where would I go?"

"Your manor, perhaps - of course, anything would be better than this place," she said, finishing her sandwich.

"The Manor would feel so cold and empty this time of year... It's truly lovely in springtime, when the garden comes alive and..." His voice trailed off and he took a savage bite from his sandwich. "Are you asking because, in actuality, _you_ want to get out of here?"

"I suppose," she shrugged. "I would love to go home."

"Perhaps you could go for a visit or something. If you're so desperate to get out of here, you could go stay with your twin brothers or something," he shrugged, glaring at his glass of juice.

"I'm not that desperate. I just...want to get out more. See the sky, breath fresh air. Merlin, I'd give anything to ride a broom again," she sighed.

"Me, too." She saw his face soften, looking less bitter and more weary. He took a slow pull from his glass.

"I suppose you're missing your girlfriend as well?"

Ginny laughed when he sprayed out a mouthful of juice. He glared at her, while conjuring a napkin.

"Pray tell, what girlfriend would this be?"

"Pansy Parkinson - isn't she your - "

"Oh, please, Weasley," he drawled, dabbing the napkin over his mouth. She just smirked at him and shrugged.

"Harry also mentioned a couple little girls constantly following you around..."

"That? That was Crabbe and Goyle!"

"Ah, kinky!" Ginny burst into laughter as Draco rolled his eyes, and reluctantly joined her.

Ginny stood and collected the empty plate and glasses.

"Shall we get back to work?"

"Just a moment, I need to talk to you first."

"About what?"

"I need you to tell me about the Chamber of Secrets, Weasley." She felt herself freeze, the dishes in her hands suddenly felt very heavy.

"Why? I thought you already knew," she whispered, her eyes unfocused. Her knees were about to give out, so she dropped back into her seat.

"I need to hear it from you. The bits and pieces that I've assembled from others...I asked Granger to tell me, but she said to ask you."

Draco took the plate from her compliant fingers and set it back on the table.

"I'm sorry. I just need to know, before we really start working on this potion. And I can't put it off much longer. Just start from the beginning. And take your time. You'll find I'm a decent listener."

It was a few moments before Ginny could feel herself breath again. She relaxed into her chair, and tried collecting her thoughts. Start from the beginning.

"Well, before my first year, I was spellotaping my books, they were all secondhand," she said, waiting for him to make a remark. He didn't, so she continued, "And I found a small black diary that I figured my mum bought for me. To help cope with my first year away from home and such." Ginny brought a hand up her face, to help hide it from Draco.

"My father put that diary in with your things," he said.

"I didn't know that at the time. So being a silly little girl, I started writing in it. And to my surprise, it wrote back! I learned that the diary had once belonged to _him_ - his name was Tom Riddle and he had been a student at Hogwarts, he was a Slytherin and Head Boy. I wrote to him, and he would write back. We wrote about anything and everything. And at the time, I was most obsessed with - "

She snuck a glance at Draco to see that he was watching her closely. When she stopped abruptly, he raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to continue.

"Well, I started to write about Harry," she flinched when he scowled, "Now imagine this, I mention that Harry Potter, the savior of the wizarding world, the one who defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, was best friends with my brother - and Tom was extremely interested. He wanted to know everything about Harry and everything about Voldemort," Ginny saw Draco clutch at his left forearm.

"And I told him. I told him everything he wanted to hear. I even told him things he didn't ask about - things I just wanted to share with him. And aside from Harry and Voldemort, I wrote about everything from the trivial and mundane to my heart's deepest, darkest desires. I poured my heart and soul into that book. And that's exactly what he wanted. My soul..."

Draco stirred a moment, and reached over to grab her quivering hand. Ginny blinked back a few tears and held his fingers tightly. The pressure seemed to ground her, allowing her to continue.

"It was pretty early in my first year when he started to show me his memories. I'd get sucked into the book, taken back in time to observe things he wanted me to see. And it was only a bit after that, that he started possessing me. I'd blackout and wake up with no memory of things I did. I'd wake up to find myself in an unusual place, covered in paint, or chicken feathers, or... blood. And I started hearing about strange things going on in the school - and - and - I just..."

* * *

Though she talked slowly, and stuttered quite a bit, she managed to spill everything she could. She told him about everything - even about trying to tell her brothers what was going on. Trying to destroy the diary. Finding out that Harry had it - how she took it back, not wanting him to know of the things she had done.

She told him things she refused to tell her mother, and things she swore she'd never say aloud. She told him about her recurring nightmares. She told him about the way she'd still lose herself to the darkness sometimes - especially when she was alone and sad. She told him about her greatest fear: losing the ability to act, feeling helpless and alone and not in control.

Draco sat there quietly, listening, squeezing her hand and allowing her to cry. Soon the tears stopped and she sat there numbly, staring straight ahead.

Ginny felt a tug on her hand, and Draco pulled her from her seat and onto his lap. He cradled her carefully, and ran a hand through her hair. He wiped away her tears and pulled her head to his chest. She allowed herself to be held, while her breathing slowed down.

"I never want to feel that again...Possessed...Not in control...I was completely helpless," she murmured, burying her face in his soft gray sweater. Finally she pulled back, looking up at his face. She was stunned to see his eyes brimming with tears.

"Go have a bath to relax yourself, Ginevra. At the least, you'll no longer reek of ginger," he pushed her off her lap, and she stumbled to stand. She left the room, looking over her shoulder to see him cover his eyes with a hand.

* * *

After scrubbing hard, Ginny sank a little deeper into her bath. She raised a hand to her face and sniffed tentatively. The faint hint of ginger mixed nicely with the smell of citrus and roses. She smiled, shakily. It was alright, she told herself. She was safe. She was OK. There was no need to be worried. And she knew that Draco deserved to know what he was dealing with - especially since he was working so hard brewing this potion for her.

Her thoughts strayed a moment to the tender way he embraced her a few minutes ago. She'd been too numb and distracted to fully appreciate it, but he'd been perfectly...well, perfectly comforting. He'd stroked her hair, like her mum did. He'd wiped away her tears. That was quite an advancing step for Draco. She'll have to tease him about it later.

She rose from her bath and dried herself. She dressed in leggings, her favorite dress, and a cardigan. She stood in front of the mirror and inspected her pale face. She drew her hairbrush through her damp hair, with a few swift strokes. She set down the brush and sighed. She felt better. Better than she'd ever felt before. For some reason, she felt like a burden had been relieved.

* * *

Ginny followed the nerve-grating sounds coming from the kitchen. She pushed open the door to find Draco seated at the table. He was wincing visibly as he ground moonstone with a pestle. She saw that the dragon eggs were still in the bubbling water on the stove.

She stood across from him a moment, wringing her hands and trying to think of something wry and witty to say. Nothing was coming to mind, so she just stood there blankly.

Draco looked up at her, and let his pestle rest in the mortar. He stood and gracefully came around the table. He stopped, towering over her, staring down at her hair, and waited for her to act. Finally he spoke, in a soft voice that she barely recognized as his.

"I'm sorry I made you go through all that..."

"For some reason, I feel better about it all," she shrugged, meeting his gray eyes. He nodded and looked away.

"You want to help me with this moonstone?" She nodded and he conjured another mortar and pestle on the table. He instructed her on what to do and they worked together, ignoring the irritating sound they produced.

Occasionally, over the crunching and grinding, Ginny could hear Draco humming softly.

* * *

"I wonder if you've got a decent singing voice, Malfoy," she yawned. They'd just finished a late supper by the fire in the study. Draco had sent the dishes to the sink in the kitchen with a wave of his wand.

He replied by humming a soft tune. She recognized it to be a song by Celestina Warbeck. She giggled, unable to believe that he was humming a song her mum would swoon over.

He suddenly stood and grabbed her hands, dragging her to her feet. He clutched her right hand and guided the other to his shoulder. He swung them around easily in a waltz, starting to sing, in a deep, resonating voice:

"Come, come and stir my cauldron, cuz if you do it right..."

Ginny laughed, headily, feeling a rush, her barefeet moving quickly to keep up. He spun her, with his usual grace, and pulled her back to him. Her hands were pressed to his chest, as she tried to keep her balance, and his hands tightly clenched on her waist, they both swayed, eyes locked.

Ginny felt the smile drop from her face, her heart pounding somewhere near her throat, and even Draco's voice faltered a little.

"If you do it right...Do it right...I'll boil you up some hot strong love, to keep you warm..."

His voice trailed off as his gray eyes dropped to her mouth. He licked his lips and then resumed their earlier waltz stance, keeping a foot of distance between them.

"To keep you warm tonight..."

They slowed to a stop, neither willing to unclasp their joined hands.

"My mother's favorite song," he mumbled.

"You have a beautiful voice," Ginny commented, serenely, her voice oddly husky, "Know anything by the Weird Sisters?"

She found herself unable to hide the burning look in her eyes. He snorted.

"I think all that moonstone has made you giddy. You don't know what you're saying," he smirked down at her face. He dropped her hand and stepped away.

"I feel relaxed. I feel happy. If that's thanks to the moonstone, then so be it," Ginny said, twirling on the spot with her arms extended.

"I think it's time to sleep. We'll have another long day of preparations tomorrow."

"When are you actually going to start brewing?" She was still spinning around, dancing to imaginary music.

"Not for at least a week - the ingredients take time to prepare. Those dragon eggs have to boil for - "

He was cut off when Ginny threw herself dizzily into his arms. He tensed as he steadied her, holding her by her shoulders.

"Alright, let's go," he whispered, turning her around and guiding her to the stairs. "I have a bit of work to finish up, got to set up a work schedule - and by the time I come up to my room, your light had better be out. Understood?" He opened her door and pushed her in.

"Yessir!" she saluted him, while giggling uncontrollably. He shut the door behind her and she changed into her nightdress. She brushed her teeth, while humming A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love.

Not quite ready for bed, Ginny paced her room. She gravitated to the small boxes and packages on her desk. She picked up a familiar colorful one, labeled Daydream Charm.

She felt a unexpected shard of fear slice into her as she considered the charm. It was a charm that took her to another place, another time. It showed her things, whether or not it was partly controlled by her own brain - there was a certain feeling of helplessness. She shuddered.

She was being silly, really. There was no harm in a stupid daydream. She'd done it before. So many people had. She clutched the box and moved to sit on her bed. She was being ridiculous, and to prove it to herself, she tore open the box.

* * *

She was lying on the floor, feeling warm and sated. Over the soft crackle of the fire beside her, she could hear the Wireless playing a soft, slow tune by Celestina Warbeck. She lazily sat up, crossing her legs.

She was at the Burrow. Home. The small sitting room was cluttered with furniture, looking cozy and inviting and positively beautiful. She'd missed this. Safe and comfortable. Home.

She looked around and was stunned to see someone slumped in the chair behind her. His face was hidden by the hood of his green cloak, but she had a feeling she knew who it was. She stood and approached him, warily. She raised a hand, slowly, about to shove aside the hood, when his hands darted forward, one grabbing her wrist, the other winding around her waist.

With a laugh, he threw aside his cloak, and revealed, once again, was Draco Malfoy - his white blond hair completely mussed, his bright eyes smiling at her. She took a moment to admire his features, and he took that moment to throw them both to the floor. He smiled down at her and pinned her arms down at her sides.

"Thought you could surprise me, eh?"

She instantly struggled against him, laughing. Before she could react, his fingers released her wrists and found their way to her stomach.

"Oh no, please, no!" she squealed with laughter as she wriggled beneath him.

"I'll only stop if you promise me something!"

"Anything - any - thing - " His fingers found the soft skin at the side of her waist. She twisted around, trying to free herself. She felt tears well in her eyes with mirth.

"Promise me you'll - "

"What!"

"Sing me a song," he whispered in her ear, stopping his attack abruptly. She lay beneath him, panting, staring up into his twinkling eyes.

"A song? That's all?"

"Do it fast, or I'll resume where I left off," he threatened, moving his warm hands to her hips and squeezing. It took her breath away.

"What shall I sing?"

"Hmm," his deep voice strummed through her a moment, as he leaned closer. And pressing soft, tickling kisses to her neck, he whispered, "Know anything by the Weird Sisters?"

* * *

A short while later, she found herself sitting on her bed, trembling. She threw the stupid box across the room and crossed her arms. Why was it that her daydreams always seemed to end up with Draco - Malfoy - kissing her senseless. And he was always so...happy. Always smiling. It was positively irritating. She threw on her dressing gown, deciding it was rather hot in her room and she'd need a cold glass of milk before bed.

She padded quietly down the stairs to the foyer and was about to turn down toward the kitchen when a light down the hallway caught her attention. The fire was still lit in the study. Could Draco have forgotten to set it out before he retired? She wandered down the hall and pushed open the door.

"You still up - "

The words died on her lips when she saw Draco was on his knees, cradling his left arm to his chest. He was shaking and tears were streaking down his face.

"Oh my god," she cried, rushing forward, not knowing what to do.

"Don't touch me - don't - " he muttered through clenched teeth. She dropped to her knees in front of him, watching him, helplessly. Minutes passed, and she continued to watch the wince on his face. It slowly shifted into a bitter scowl. He took a gasping breath and seemed to snap out of a trance. He immediately raised his hands to viciously wipe away his tears.

"What the hell are you doing down here?"

Ginny was a bit surprised by the biting tone he used, but instead of putting up a fight, like she normally would, she leaned forward and collected him in her arms. He didn't resist and collapsed against her.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes," he answered angrily, raising a hand to wipe away more tears. "I'm fine...Bloody used to it by now."

Ginny felt a bit guilty about her silly Daydream Charm from earlier. Here, in her arms, the real Draco Malfoy was trembling and taking shuddering breaths. She rested her cheek on the silky hair on top of his head, waiting for him to recover himself and push her away.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks so much for the reviews!

PLEASE REVIEW!


	14. About To Get Interesting

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: About To Get Interesting

* * *

Ginny tossed the fresh sheet over the bed and expertly tucked in the edges. Over the flannel sheets she tossed an over-sized white duvet - which she suspected had been brought from Malfoy Manor. It was incredibly soft and incredibly warm, and too large for the bed, with the sides hanging down the floor.

She grabbed the pillow, about to yank off the cover, but she paused and pressed it to her nose. It smelled like him. His strong and exotic cologne. Unable to resist, she inhaled deeply again.

"What are you doing?"

She dropped the pillow and spun around to see Draco at the door. Her eyes widened further upon seeing that he was clutching a towel around his narrow waist, wet from his bath. His hair was dripping water on his face.

"I was just changing your sheets...You get dressed, I'll wait in the hall," she blushed and rushed to leave the room. She brushed past him into the hallway and she glanced back over her shoulder to see him closing his door and smirking to himself.

Ginny rolled her eyes and paced. She kicked the opposite wall softly.

"Oh for heaven's - " she mumbled.

The door opened again, revealing Draco dressed in black slacks and a blue button-up shirt. His hair was still dripping.

"Back to work, slave," he said, smirking at her, barely suppressing his smile.

Ginny clucked her tongue and shuffled past him. She picked up the pillow, removing the cover and replacing it with a fresh one. Her hands moved with little mental guidance, and she turned her head to watch Draco admire himself in the mirror.

With his wand, he slowly siphoned the water from his hair. While Ginny replaced the pillow and folded the Weasley blanket her mother had given him, he dragged a comb through his silk hair carefully, seeming to put each hair in the perfect place. Ginny bent to lay the wool blanket across the foot of his bed and watched him pat his cologne on his cheeks and neck.

Ginny felt heat rise up in her cheeks when he glanced at her in the reflection. She immediately straightened.

"You've got a bad habit of staring, Weasley," he said, turning to face her, leaning back against the dresser.

"Only at you," she replied cheekily, jumping onto his bed and sitting cross-legged.

"Girls can't seem to help themselves," he sighed, as he bent to gather a few articles of clothing from the floor and tossing them, along with his towel, in the basket beside his cupboard. She was inwardly proud that he did it himself - that too, without using his wand.

"It's alright though," he continued in the same weary tone, "You can't be blamed. My mother has always told me that I look like a prince - "

"Oh, do you hear yourself?" Ginny smiled, wryly. "It's really no wonder about your Patronus."

It was only the night before that she had seen his Patronus for the first time. After Draco managed to pull himself together, he'd cast the Patronus with his message off to Shacklebolt. Ginny was not very surprised to see a gorgeous, preening peacock ruffle its feathers before disappearing.

"What about my Patronus, Weasley?" He frowned, nearly pouting.

"I must say, it suits you."

"You know, I don't usually tolerate such talk from a house elf," he drawled, sauntering toward the bed.

Ginny didn't know how to respond to that, and while trying to be angry, she choked back a laugh. She reached for his pillow and threw it at his head.

It struck its target, leaving him standing in front of her, hair disarrayed. The feral grin rapidly forming on his lips, as he retrieved his pillow, made Ginny run, laughing, out of the room.

* * *

Ginny set a plate in front of him and smirked to see he'd redone his hair before coming down to the kitchen. She took her place across from him and tucked into her own breakfast.

"We need more moonstone powder, so you can work on that when you're finished eating," he stated, looking over a schedule he'd scrawled onto a large piece of parchment. With a flick of his wand, he plastered it to the wall, where they could see it clearly and keep on task. Ginny thought that Hermione would be fairly impressed with the rather complicated, color-coded monstrosity.

"Ugh, this stupid potion is going to take ages," she groaned, shoving a forkful of eggs in her mouth.

He raised his eyebrows at her.

"This 'stupid potion' is all for your benefit, you know."

"What happens if I don't drink it before Harry kills Vol - "

"Don't say His name," he looked up at her, darkly. He absently hugged his left arm to his stomach.

"Well, what happens if I don't drink the potion in time?"

He sighed, delicately pushing around the food on his plate with his fork.

"I'm not positive. You'd probably be in severe pain when... it happens. Granger suspects there might be behavorial changes afterward. You could be...darker," he explained.

"Like more nightmares? More spells of depression?"

He shrugged at this, though the way he avoided her eyes made Ginny certain he knew more than he was ready to let on.

"When was your last nightmare?" he asked, pointedly steering the conversation in a different direction.

"I don't know. Haven't had one here at Grimmauld, though. So at least a few months."

"And what did you see?"

"Remember how I said during my first year, when I'd write in the diary - I - I'd black out and not be able to remember anything? Wake up in strange places?"

He nodded, pushing aside his plate, focusing on her words.

"Well, my nightmares - it's strange, but it feels like it's those missing times. I can see myself doing things - the things I had no memory of doing. Like painting the words on the wall with blood. Killing chickens. And opening the Cham - Chamber..."

He leaned forward.

"You can see yourself? Like through someone else's eyes? Or you see it through your own eyes, like you're experiencing it?"

She thought a moment.

"My own eyes. Like it was me. I was doing those things."

"But you weren't," he said. "You didn't do any of those things."

She nodded and took a shaky breath.

"Eat your food," he commanded. And while she turned her attention to her cold hash and eggs, he seemed to pour over what she'd told him.

* * *

Ginny ground the moonstone mechanically, busy watching Draco look over the valerian roots. After he inspected each one carefully, he began cutting them into precise cubes.

Maybe it was the way he was squinting down at his knife, the way the light made his hair shine golden, or just the way he sat up straight, his ankles gracefully crossed under him - but Ginny couldn't help but think that Draco's mother had a valid point. The boy did look like a prince.

She looked down at the powdered moonstone, gathering her thoughts, which involved a certain product made by her twin brothers. She'd seen the Daydream Charm used by her own classmates in school. She knew that if the person using the charm was called by name, the enchantment would break, bringing the person crashing back to reality.

"Draco?"

He raised his piercing gray eyes to look at her, arching an eyebrow.

"Can I ask a favor of you?"

In response, he also raised the other eyebrow.

"Do you think we could spare about half an hour after lunch?"

"Why?"

"I need you to test a charm for me?"

"Is my hair going to change colors?"

"No," she smiled, "Unless you'd like it to..."

"Will I turn into any sort of bird - or any animal for that matter?"

"No."

"What sort of charm is this anyway?"

It wasn't a fear of getting caught in the charm, without being able to come out of it, that motivated her to ask Draco to test the charm. It was a curiousity. She wanted to observe what effects it had on someone while they were in the charm. She wanted to see what she was leaving behind when she was taken to the world inside her head for half an hour.

"I'll show you after lunch."

He sighed, truly weary. "Alright, but only half an hour," he said, looking over at the schedule on the wall.

* * *

"Sit down," Ginny ordered, taking a bit of pleasure in the fact that Draco obeyed. He settled himself on her bed, looking rather bored.

She shuffled through the things on her desk, finding a few more Daydream Charms. She picked up one of the small boxes and chucked it to Draco, who caught it easily.

"You've got to be joking," he said, turning the colorful box over in his long fingers.

"Just open it, please?"

"Why?"

Ginny didn't like the analyzing look he was giving her. She shrugged, hoping it looked casual.

"What do you want me to do with this?"

"Open it. I just want to observe you while you're..."

"Daydreaming. Charming," he said, tearing open the box. His hands fell to his lap, the box gently clutched in his fingers. The annoyed expression on his face melted away into one of distant relaxation.

She stepped closer and looked into his gray eyes. They were normally fairly expressive - right now they looked glassy. Like he wasn't looking at anything in that world, much less that room. Ginny waved her hand in front of his face and he didn't even flinch. She made a rude gesture. Still nothing. She bent closer to watch his face.

It was odd that his face wasn't entirely slack - instead he had a determined look on his pointed features. His brow was starting to wrinkle, his eyes seeming to narrow slightly. She shifted her gaze slowly from his sharp gray eyes to his perfectly shaped blond eyebrows. She followed the line of his nose from bridge to tip, marveling at the pink flush forming across the pale skin of his cheeks. She traced the shape of his lips with her eyes and was taken aback when his pink tongue darted out to moisten them.

She stepped back. And after a few blinks, she took in his whole appearance. It struck Ginny, once again, how annoyingly handsome he was. This was Draco Malfoy, after all.

She watched him breath for several minutes, just watching his chest expand under his shirt.

After nearly twenty minutes had passed, Ginny got rather bored of watching. She wanted to touch him, but she knew that would be very inappropriate - touching someone who is not present in mind. Besides, touching him would pull him out of the Charm - depriving her of the opportunity to stare at him without being caught.

She was admiring the few wisps of hair falling over his eyes when he finally returned.

Draco's eyes blinked several times, focusing on the room around him. His jaw set firmly, and he pressed his lips together. He raised a hand to smooth down his hair. He stood and straightened his clothing.

Then, without a glance at her, he ran from the room. Ginny could have sworn he wouldn't have run faster if Lord Voldemort himself was giving chase.

"Draco!"

She stumbled down the stairs to the kitchen, nearly falling over herself as she ran to follow Draco. The door was already swinging shut when she reached it. She pushed hard.

"What happened?" she asked, finding him sitting back at his place, fumbling over a bundle of lovage. "Are you alright? Wh-What did you see?"

"The moonstone, Weasley," he gestured to her mortar.

"But - "

He shot her a cold glare that told her to simply let it go. For now. She had, after all, gotten what she wanted.

Ginny settled herself across from him, resuming where she'd left off with the moonstone powder.

* * *

She was preparing a simple dinner, soup and sandwiches.

She stirred the soup on the stove, her eyes fixed on the bubbling water over the dragon eggs. She could hear Draco behind her at the table, shuffling through his notes.

He'd been silent all afternoon, completely ignoring her. She sighed.

She knew the Daydream Charm was harmless. It was a joke, a prank, a stupid little fantasy conceived by your own mind, she thought. So what was Draco Malfoy so upset about? He had obviously seen something that bothered him. Had he seen himself at his Manor? His posh life once more restored? Perhaps himself with a gorgeous girl? Maybe he's come to realize who he was and where he was. Maybe it opened his eyes to reality. That though he was living at the Order's headquarters, he was by no means less of a Malfoy, less of a prince. And maybe he thought he shouldn't have to lower himself to Weasleys for company.

Ginny shrugged to herself, ladling soup into two bowls. She brought the soup to the table and set one in front of Draco. He arranged his parchments and tucked them under his arm. He waved his wand, conjuring a tray under his soup bowl and he put a few sandwiches on it. He picked up the tray, stood, and left the room without a word.

* * *

After eating her dinner half-heartedly, Ginny wandered to the study, where she kindled a small fire and sat in an armchair, intent on finishing Bill's scarf.

So he was angry with her. He was angry about whatever he had seen and he was blaming her. Within a few days, he'd cool down and she'd apologize. She was sure he'd forgive her, and they could continue their light-hearted friendship. Because, Ginny had concluded, that's all either of them had.

She found herself humming a soft tune, a Weird Sisters song that she'd first heard at the Yule Ball ages ago. She lost herself in memories of that night.

Thoughts of Neville looking dashing in his dress robes, with his large feet frequently stomping on her little ones, and Michael Corner nervously approaching her at the drinks table, and Harry, more handsome than she'd ever seen him, spent the entire night pining over that worthless Cho Chang.

She tried to remember if she'd seen Draco very much that night. She remembered seeing him, dressed in very expensive, old-fashioned dress robes, with a primping Pansy Parkinson on his arm.

She tried to remember if he'd danced that night. Whether he'd smiled. Whether he'd snuck off to the rose gardens and kissed anyone.

She pulled the length of the red and black scarf in her hands and inspected it closely. It wasn't cute and fluffy like Hermione's had been. It wasn't elegant and sleek like Charlie's was. It was pretty wicked and would match her brother Bill very well. She finished the end, not bothering with tassels or bobbles and tossed it into her knitting basket.

She stood and stretched.

An idea occurred to her.

She hurried up to her room, trying not to look twice at Draco's door on the way.

* * *

Ginny flipped the pages slowly, taking in the backgrounds of each picture carefully. A few times she spotted his blurry bright blond hair, his tall frame standing amongst his friends, usually slouching in his black school robes.

She reached the first in a small series of photos taken at the Yule Ball. Colin hadn't been invited, so he'd resorted to hiding under tables and behind decorations to take a few snapshots.

There were several of her, dancing wincingly with Neville. There was one of Hermione with Krum, looking like she was floating on air. There were even a couple of Harry and Ron, both looking completely depressed about the whole affair.

Ginny spotted a flash of white blond hair in one of the pictures. He was waltzing. The girl in his arms, who surprisingly wasn't Pansy, looked overwhelmed. Though it was a little blurry, Ginny was sure she could recognize the trademark smirk on his lips, as he turned to face her, winking.

In another photo, she could see herself near the drinks table, sipping punch and looking out over the Great Hall. Down the table, near the other end, the tall, thin, blond was watching her, holding his own drink. Michael Corner came into frame and walked up to her, starting a conversation. Ginny watched as the blond boy drained the rest of his drink, slammed the glass on the table and swept away.

She shut the book and put it back on her desk.

She laid back in her bed, pulling her blanket up to her chin, and eventually fell into a troubled sleep.

* * *

Ginny pushed open the kitchen door and saw that Draco was, again, dressed and working with the lovage. He didn't look up as she entered.

"Breakfast?"

"Just tea, please," he said in an oddly blank voice. It wasn't cold with anger. It was simply devoid of any emotion - reminding her very much of the Draco she'd first met at 12 Grimmauld Place. She suppressed the urge to yell at him, argue, ask him what he saw that made him shut her out.

She served the tea, by now knowing very well how he preferred his.

"So what do you want me to - "

Without looking up, he pointed at the schedule on the wall. She stepped up to it, trying to decipher his intricate code. She checked the date - the time - tasks written in red were for her - ah, the sneezewort for this morning. Lovely, she thought, as she read the brief instructions.

Among the packages on the kitchen counter, she found the one containing sneezewort buttons - as soon as she opened it, she sneezed five times in a row. This was going to be a long morning, she sighed.

* * *

It'd been about three days since Draco had used that Daydream Charm, since he'd completely withdrawn into himself, ignoring her when they were working and avoiding her when they weren't. Ginny didn't think she could take it much longer.

They both had been working hard, and soon found themselves ahead of the schedule - nearly ready to start brewing.

She'd had more free time - which she spent knitting (she'd started a pretty pale pink shawl for Fleur) and reading a novel she'd found amidst the pile of things Fred and George had brought.

She'd been tempted to lose herself in a Daydream Charm, finding friendship and closeness with someone - even if it were Draco Malfoy - and even if it was only in an alternate reality.

A few times, she'd also been sorely tempted to try out a few of the pranks on Draco - but she knew she shouldn't add fuel to their already strained relationship. If it could be called relationship.

Though they'd managed to develop some sort of strange friendship, Ginny felt that Draco had been pushed into it - her companionship was forced upon him. It wasn't fair, but considering the circumstances, it wouldn't hurt to be polite and occasionally share a laugh.

She'd been so lost in these thoughts while preparing dinner, that she didn't notice that someone had entered the house until her mother bustled into the kitchen, setting bags on the kitchen table.

She broke away from the stove to give her mother a hug and kiss.

* * *

"My mum would like to see you in the kitchen," Ginny said, from the doorway of the study. Draco stood and strode past her. She followed him back to the kitchen, where her mother set the table for three and was seated in Ginny's usual place.

"Good evening, Mrs. Weasley," he said, stiffly sitting at his place, "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, yes, please tuck in, dears," she gestured for both of them to start eating. She waved her wand, summoning one of the canvas bags she brought with her. "I sent those owls, like you asked, Draco, and here are the replies. There's a letter from your Mum as well. Bill also settled matters over at Gringotts for you, like you wanted."

Ginny knew that she would not be included in this conversation and resignedly started with her supper.

"Thank you," said Draco as he started taking folded parchments and scrolls out of the bag.

"Now, put that away, eat your dinner first," reprimanded Molly, and with a flick of her wand, all the parchments were shoved back in the bag.

"I'll have more owls for you after dinner, if you could," said Draco, taking his first bite of dinner.

"Yes, of course," Molly smiled. Her eyes wandered to the schedule posted on the wall. "That's for the potion, is it?"

"The schedule. We're making good progress, I'll have to update it tonight," he answered, taking another bite.

"Oh, that's splendid news! I'll have a few spare hours during the next few days, as well, would you like for me to come by and help?"

"Yes!" Ginny cried, unable to control the volume of her voice. Her mother smiled at her, indulgently. "I mean...if you could, Mum."

"Of course I could, love."

Ginny noticed Draco was scowling into his plate.

"If you'll be here to help out, Mrs. Weasley, then I'd like to make arrangements to go to the Manor again. Could you have a word with Shacklebolt about it?"

"Oh, yes, certainly."

"And after this potion is brewed, I intend to join my mother in Paris, if you could please - "

"What?" Ginny interrupted.

" - Please tell him about that as well."

"You're leaving?" She was stunned. He remained silent and continued eating.

* * *

After dinner, her mother went to the Burrow to see after the house, before joining her father at their secret location, with promises of returning the next afternoon by tea time.

Draco saw her to the door, talking to her in fervent whispers, Ginny stayed behind in the kitchen, promising to do the dishes.

Instead, she sat at the table, her head in her hands, unable to get herself to stand. She heard the front door shut and she knew Draco would now shut himself in his room for the night.

So she was surprised when the kitchen door swung open, revealing Draco with his wand out. He directed the dishes to the sink and they started washing themselves. He waved his wand cleaning the counters, the table, and the floor. He walked over to the dragon eggs, still boiling on the stove. He then went over to the schedule and started making adjustments with his wand.

Ginny couldn't stand it any longer.

"What did I do!" she yelled, still clutching her head in her hands.

Draco didn't answer. He stood very still in front of the schedule, his back to her.

"I mean, obviously I've done something. You won't speak to me, you won't look at me - " she paused, noticing that he was still not giving any indication that he was listening, " - Stop ignoring me!" She stood up, slamming the palm of her hand on the table.

He slowly turned to face her, giving her a very calculating look.

"I'm...I was just trying to protect you."

"From what?" She advanced on him, her hands on her hips.

"Alright, I know you hate it when someone tries to - "

"That's right, I don't need any more protecting - so cut it out!"

"I...it's..." He diverted his eyes.

"What?" she growled.

"That stupid Daydream Charm..." he mumbled, turning his eyes upward, sighing at the ceiling. "Look, I just need to keep a little distance between us, alright?"

"Distance?" Ginny took a few steps back.

"I just mean that...that bloody Daydream, I just saw something that troubled me, is all."

"What did you see?"

"I'd rather not say," he muttered, his cheeks turning a brilliant pink shade.

"What was it? If it bothered you that much - you ought to get it off your - "

"I'm not telling _you_!"

"Oh, come on! OK, if you tell me, I'll share what I see in my Daydreams."

"Please, spare me of your silly fantasies about snogging Potter," he groaned, crossing his arms across his chest.

She smiled up at him. "It's not Harry I'm snogging," she said in a low voice. He straightened up.

"You see, that's what I mean."

"What?" she said, defensively.

"Forget it," he said, striding to the door.

"Wait - come on, I thought we were friends."

He stopped in the doorway.

"We're...friends?" he asked, saying the word as if it were foreign. He looked at her over his shoulder.

"I thought so."

Draco stood there a moment, considering this.

"Want to go for a walk?"

* * *

It was near freezing outside. Ginny pulled her threadbare coat around herself tighter.

"For all that knitting you do, you don't even have gloves or a scarf of your own," Draco said, removing his cloak. He put it around her shoulders, and she noticed that his fingers did not linger.

"I do so, they're at the Burrow."

"Of course, where they'll do the most good."

"Besides we never get out, I never thought I'd be using them."

"Too true."

They were walking to the small park in the neighborhood, where the Portkey had brought them the day they'd gone shopping. It was fairly late, most of the houses were dark - only the streetlights afforded them any light. The sky was cloudy and there was a bit of a mist looming all around.

"Still, it feels great," Ginny sighed, breathing in deeply, taking in the crisp, cold air.

"This was a stupid idea, if I've ever had one," Draco said, rubbing his gloved hands together. Ginny smiled up at him, noticing his nose and cheeks were a bright pink.

"If only we had brooms!"

"I could try summoning mine from my room, but I refuse to give in to every single one of your whims, Weasley."

Ginny giggled, clutching the cloak tighter around her. They reached the large oak tree in the middle of the park.

"Ok, as lovely as this all is - my arse is freezing. Can we go back?"

"In a minute. Just breath the air," he said. He closed his eyes and sighed. Ginny obeyed, breathing deeply, keeping her eyes focused on him. His flushed face relaxed and slowly he opened his eyes, meeting hers. They stood like that a few minutes, each watching the other, unable to look away.

"Alright, Ginny," he said.

"What?"

"I'll show you my stupid Daydream. And then you'll see why I'm so worried about it. But you have to promise me something."

Ginny shivered a moment at the familiarity of those words.

"Any - anything," she whispered.

"Well, two things actually - first - you have to show me your Daydreams - and second - you have to promise that you'll stop seducing me," he said, his deep voice lowered to a near whisper.

"What do you mean?" Ginny was shocked. "I have not been seducing you!"

"Well, then, you have to stop whatever it is you're doing to make me...you - you'll just have to stop..." He cleared his throat, letting his eyes roam over the park. "Let's head back now."

"Oh, right - we should head back _now_ - now that we've finally come to the crux of the matter!"

"Come on," he said, taking her hand and pulling her back towards Number 12. She was not about to give in and wrenched her hand from his grip. She glowered at him while rooting herself to her spot.

"Don't be difficult, come on," he said, gesturing back up the road.

"I have not been seducing you!"

"Oh, Merlin," he muttered, rolling his eyes. Before she could move to react, he closed the distance between them with two sweeping steps, gathered her in his arms and threw her over his shoulder. He started walking back towards headquarters, ignoring her indignant muttering the whole way.

* * *

Draco deposited her in the armchair near the fireplace and, while catching his breath, he drew his wand to light the fire.

"Merlin, you're not as light as I'd have thought," he panted, removing his coat. He smoothed his hair, smirking at the glare she was shooting up at him.

"I can't believe you," she muttered, sinking into the cloak around her. His cloak. She inhaled his heady scent, only distantly aware that he was watching her.

He knelt down on the hearth rug, and gestured for her to join him. She sighed and pushed the cloak off her shoulders. She unbuttoned her coat and left both in the chair, sliding down to her knees in front of him.

"Look into my eyes," he said, staring at her intently.

"Oh please, look who's seducing who now!"

"Weasley - just do it!"

She shook her head, tossing her hair over her shoulder, and she looked up into his eyes.

One moment she saw the steely gray of his eyes. Then the deep black of his pupils.

Then she was staring at a large library, books lining every tall wall in ornate shelves. There was a small spiral staircase in the corner, leading to a catwalk, with access to the higher shelves. An enormous fireplace, of white marble and gray granite, was roaring with orange flames. Ginny turned to see a heavy oak desk behind her, at which a handsome blond haired man was sitting, doodling on a parchment, sighing contentedly and completely ignoring her.

She realized she was in Draco's memory. This was his Daydream. And he was in his Manor, which was beautiful beyond words. She went back to admiring the silent room when a sudden pop startled her. A small house elf stood by the door, wringing his hands.

"Master? A young lady to see you, sir! She is waiting in the parlor, she is wanting to see you, sir!"

"Who is it?" His voice was gruff, sounding annoyed at being disturbed.

"I not know, Master, I has never seen her..."

"I'll see to it. Dismissed," he stood and waved his hand at the elf.

Ginny ran to follow Draco through the large double doors of the library. She followed him down several hallways and they entered an elegant sitting room - equally large and charming.

Ginny could see someone sitting at the chaise, her back turned to them. By the red locks of hair and the colorful dress, Ginny could tell that it was herself. She drew a gasp, clamping a hand over her mouth, covering up her startled giggles.

"Can I help you, Miss?" asked Draco's deep voice, as he strode forward. The girl turned to look at him, smiling.

"I should hope so!"

"Weasley? You've interrupted very important work," he said, in a low, husky voice. "Now tell me what you want."

Ginny watched herself stand and grasp the lapels of Draco's shirt. She pulled him down, brushing her mouth over his.

"You."

* * *

Ginny blinked and found herself staring into gray eyes, letting out a deep breath. She was back to reality, kneeling across from Draco in the small study of Order headquarters, feeling colder than she had moments ago. She shivered.

"Very important work? You were doodling!" she grinned, unable to hold back more giggles. Draco narrowed his eyes at her.

"Don't you see, Weasley? You have to stop whatever it is you're doing. I can't be having such ridiculous thoughts about you!"

"You didn't even let me see the good part! I could tell it was about to get interesting," she laughed, waggling her eyebrows at him.

"Oh, that's right, laugh at me. Fine!" He growled. "Friends, she says!"

"Was that Legilimency?"

"Yes."

"And if I think about my Daydreams, you'll be able to...see them?"

"I think so."

"Alright, then. Look into my eyes," she said, smiling wide, mimicking the eerie manner of a Seer.

"Somehow I think I'm going to regret this," he whispered, leaning forward and obeying her.

* * *

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	15. Home Away From Home

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Fifteen: Home Away From Home

* * *

His silver eyes stared unbelievingly into her warm brown eyes.

"I bet it's cabin fever," Ginny said, trying to keep the mood light, though her fingers were trembling and her palms were sweaty.

"What's that?" He was pressing his hand to his forehead, checking his temperature. She smiled.

"Being stuck here, you know, together. It's enough to drive us crazy," she shrugged.

"Oh. Right," Draco said, lowering his eyes, a delicate pink flush forming across his cheeks. Ginny couldn't help but smile at the awkwardness of the moment. She rooted around for something appropriate to say.

"Er...so your Manor is beautiful," she said, twisting the hem of her skirt in her fingers. He shrugged one shoulder, tracing a pattern on the rug with his finger.

"Was that your home? In the second Dream?"

"Yes, that was the Burrow, in all it's glory," Ginny chuckled uncomfortably.

"It was...nice."

Ginny laughed. "You don't have to lie. You want to say something like...'it's a right hovel compared to my -"

"A house does not need to be a mansion to be a home. The Manor is large and empty and cold... I mean, it's home to me, but it's always been rather lonely."

"The Burrow's quite the opposite - it's small but warm and comfortable, crowded and inviting..."

"Your mum's a bit of a packrat, isn't she?"

"Come off it," she smiled, glad they'd reached a comfortable topic - they were each missing home.

"Do you want to come with me? When I go to the Manor?" He was looking up at her, with an uncharacteristically timid look in his eyes.

"I'd like that. But shouldn't I stay back to work on the potion?"

"Oh, well most of the ingredients are ready, we're a bit ahead of schedule. I think we could afford to take a day off."

"You got any open fields on your estate?"

He arched an eyebrow at this, clearly thinking of the first Daydream she'd shown him. He nodded slowly, uncertainly.

"Think we could go for a fly? You know, on brooms?"

He smiled, broadly, and nodded again, this time more enthusiastically. Ginny was taken aback a moment by the way the simple gesture lit up his face. Like her silly Daydreams. Where his smile transformed his face and he was almost...friendly...and happy.

She was about to comment on his charming smile, wondering if he'd react with a blush or a boast, when they heard the front door slam open, voices floating up from the foyer.

He stood, pulling out his wand and placing himself between the door of the study and her. She smiled at his protective instinct, finding the gesture quite different, and far more flattering, from the bothersome nature of her brothers.

"Maybe it's Tonks?" she suggested, peaking around his arm, up at him.

"Then we'd have heard the umbrella stand," he said seriously. A moment's pause...and they both started to laugh. Poor Tonks. Her arch nemesis was that awful troll's leg.

The mood in the room changed in an instant and Ginny couldn't help but wonder where their conversation might have led if they hadn't been interrupted.

* * *

"There's been another jailbreak from Azkaban. About five Death Eaters," Harry said, pacing around the kitchen.

Draco looked up, and said, "My father?"

Harry nodded. Draco swore under his breath.

"We're not sure where they are, at this point, but looks like they managed to get out with help from the giants," Hermione explained. "Since there's no dementors at the Prison, the security has been rather lax, to say the least."

Ginny watched Draco, whose mind seemed to be racing.

"There'll be an Order meeting tomorrow evening, hopefully our members at the Ministry can tell us what's happening. I'm sure they'll manage to find them," Hermione continued. She placed a hand on Draco's wrist and said, "It'll be fine."

Ginny's heart clenched in her chest upon seeing Hermione touch Draco and she mentally pinched herself for feeling jealous. She stood abruptly and asked, "Tea?"

Hermione gestured for her to sit, while she stood and moved to the counter.

"Watch out for those eggs, those are important."

"I'm not touching the stove, Draco - relax."

"So you lot staying until tomorrow's meeting?" Ginny asked, fidgeting in her seat beside Draco at the scrubbed kitchen table. Ron was eying Draco carefully, while Harry yawned wide and stretched.

"We're only here for a quick refresh. Figure we might as well stay for the meeting. We'll be out again after that," Ron explained.

"Ron, you want tea?"

"Oh," he said, watching with narrowed eyes as Hermione served Draco first. "Yeah."

"Where have you three been? I thought you were at the Burrow for a few days."

"Yes, just two days. Needed that break," said Harry, blowing to cool his tea. "Been out there since. We headed a raid down south, before coming back here..." He looked like he could barely keep his eyes open.

"A raid? What sort of raid?" Ginny asked. Instead of answering, Harry yawned again.

"Catch anyone?" Draco asked, sipping his tea, demurely.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Malfoy," growled Ron.

"Well, yes I _would_," he snarled back, using the same tone as Ron.

"Stop it, both of you," said Harry.

"Well, we took your advice, Draco. We were spotted by the Death Eaters and we managed two captures - the Carrows, was it? Yes, there will be Ministry dealings and publicity as well. It worked wonderfully," said Hermione, toasting Draco with her cup.

"Of course, now we'll have to be very careful the next few weeks," said Ron, frowning at Draco. "Especially with the fugitives out now."

Ginny struggled to keep up with this conversation. She saw the smug look on Draco's face and knew that he wouldn't tell her about this development. Perhaps she could get some information out of Hermione later.

"This is amazing, did you make this, Draco?" Hermione was standing by the color-coded schedule on the wall, taking in the detail, noting how far along they had come with the potion.

"Yes, needed something to keep little Weasley in line," he drawled. Ginny rolled her eyes and smiled. For some reason, Ron seemed to find their interaction a bit comforting, because he stopped glaring at Draco and shrugged.

"Oh," yawned Harry, "Perhaps we should have some coffee instead...Anyone know a spell for that?" He was eying the contents of his teacup, accusingly. Instead of waiting for a response, he stood and set his cup in the sink.

He gestured at Ginny to follow him. He left the kitchen, starting up the stairs.

"Go on, we'll be up in a minute," said Ron.

Ginny rose from the table, abandoning her tea, pausing a moment at the door, looking over her shoulder. Draco was sitting with his arms crossed, watching her, while Hermione resumed perusing the schedule, asking him questions about their progress. Ron shuffled to the cupboard, rummaging for biscuits. When the kitchen door shut behind her, she rushed to follow Harry.

"You alright, Harry?"

He was slowly stomping up the staircase to the room that he usually shared with Ron. He stretched and from behind him, Ginny noticed his shirt rode up, revealing a bit of his back.

"As good as I can be, I suppose," he answered, twisting the doorknob to his room and tumbling in. She followed him in and shut the door quietly. He stumbled a bit to the bed and sat down heavily.

"Did you want to talk to me?"

"Yeah - I've been wanting to ask how you've been coping with Malfoy?"

"He's really been... alright," Ginny said slowly, thinking about the past three agonizing days. "We've been pretty busy working on the potion, Mum came by today for dinner. Things are fine, Harry, don't have to worry," she smiled, sitting down on Ron's bed, crossing her legs under her.

"Oh, but I _do_ have to worry, Ginny," he said, bending to untie his trainers. He removed them and started peeling off his socks, wriggling his toes.

"And why is that, Harry? Worried about big, bad Malfoy? Think he'll do something nasty to the little girl? Make me cry?"

"I'm worried about you. He's not a good guy, it's just not in him. You need to be careful. And keep your distance."

"How ironic," she sighed. Hadn't he told her the very same advice - keep a distance?

"What's ironic?"

"He told me the same thing."

"Well, that goes to show that he may be bad, but at least he's smart. So work on the potion, but don't get attached or anything. He's a Death Eater, for crying out loud."

"He's as much a Death Eater as I am, Harry."

"That doesn't make sense. You don't know what you're - "

"Don't tell me I don't make sense! I do, too! He was forced into it, like I was with the whole Chamber-"

He stood up.

"Ginny, you don't have a damn Mark on your arm! He took that Mark willingly, but you didn't try to give Tom Riddle your soul on purpose."

She unfolded her legs and stood, as well.

"And how would you know, Harry?"

"What?"

"I know I never brought this up, but did you ever think to ask me about it? How I felt? If I ever thought about it? You never cared before - so don't talk about it like you know anything!"

"What? You never told me...I didn't ask because...Well... you didn't want to give him your soul, did you?"

"No, of course not, don't be daft. Anyway, I was saying that he didn't want to take the Mark, either - he was forced into it - Voldemort threatened to kill him," Ginny paused when Harry snorted, "He was trying to protect his family - "

"Yeah, I know all about that. He told me the same rubbish. Protecting his family. As if they're worth protecting! He should have just refused and let them die, it would have saved us all a lot of trouble!"

"How dare you?" Ginny's hands clenched into tight fists. "That's the cruelest thing you could say about someone's family, Harry! And coming from you, someone who's lived without his parents his whole life, I thought you'd have more sympathy than that!"

"You've had the pleasure of meeting his father, Ginny - and you know what a bastard he is – now he's on the loose! And you may not have gotten to know his mother, but she's - "

"Stop it!" she screeched, shoving him in the chest. Harry was shocked for a moment. Then he looked down at her with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry."

"If you hate him so much, why did you vouch for him, Harry?"

"Dumbledore...that night on the ramparts... I was there, Ginny. I watched Draco lower his wand when Dumbledore offered him a way out. It's not something I'd have expected or something I'd have done for Malfoy. I did it for Dumbledore."

Ginny swallowed, her mind reeling. Harry had been there when Draco...

"Listen, I didn't want us to fight over this. I just wanted to warn you."

"Warn me?" Ginny crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head, almost knowing exactly where this was leading.

"Y-yes," he faltered, "Your mum let slip that you two were getting along...what'd she say... 'swimmingly'... and I can't have that!"

"You can't have that! What does it matter to you?"

Harry heaved a sigh. The conversation was apparently not going as he'd have liked. He took a step toward her and lightly put his hands on her shoulders. When she didn't pull away, he stepped closer, letting his hands slide down her arms to take hold of her hands.

"I care about you, Ginny."

She froze at the words, unable to react. Her mind raced, trying to recall him ever using that phrase. The closest he'd ever come to admitting his feelings was 'I like you very much', a phrase over which she'd been ecstatic for a week.

And for a moment, she wished these new words had a greater impact on her than they did.

Before he could lean down closer to her, there was a rough knock at the door and it swung open. Ron bustled in, looking slightly surprised at the intimate stance between his little sister and his best friend.

"I have to go," Ginny murmured, pulling away from Harry. "There are fresh towels in the loo, Mum changed your sheets, should be fine... There's a lantern under there... Of course, you lot can use your wands for light. I'll just go check on Hermione and get to bed as well. Good night," Ginny called as she left the room. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it breathlessly.

* * *

"What are you doing? Get to bed," Draco said. He was sitting at the kitchen table, thumbing through a Potions text, not bothering to look up at her.

Ginny ignored him, starting to wash the teacups by hand. Her mind was still racing from talking to Harry.

She kept wondering why she wasn't thinking about his shirt riding up, like she had when Draco's shirt had done the same thing. She kept wondering why Harry's delicate touch seemed very inadequate, for Merlin's sake, they'd already snogged countless times. She kept wondering at his choice of words - he cared for her? - and she wondered why she felt nothing about it.

A teacup slipped from her soapy hand, landing with a crash in the sink, where it broke. She swore loudly. A shard sliced her finger, leaving a long, shallow cut.

"Let me see," Draco called. He didn't stand up, but he looked up at her expectantly, holding out his hand.

"It's nothing, I'm fine."

"Just let me see it, Weasley," he drawled, standing up. He walked around to the sink. He waved his wand and the teacup was reformed. "Picked up that spell from my clumsy cousin."

"Tonks?"

"She's frighteningly good at spells of that sort. Tell me what I should do for this," he said, taking her hand in his large one. She swallowed and couldn't stop it from trembling.

"I don't know," she answered, looking up at him. He frowned.

"I thought you wanted to be a Healer. You should know some basic things by now," he said.

"We don't usually get things this minor healed up. And if it's bad, we'd go to the Hospital Wing or at home, my mum usually does the healing. She's got a decent book of simple spells for minor stuff. But it's at the Burrow," Ginny said, looking up to see Draco examining her small wound carefully. She smiled at his gentle manner.

He let go of her hand and summoned a long strip of linen and a roll of tape. He wound the linen around her finger.

"Is that too tight?"

"No, it's fine."

"This is really rather pathetic. For someone aspiring to be a Healer. Having her own wound tended to in this manner. I mean, honestly, Weasley."

She stayed silent as he taped the linen tightly in place. He leaned down over her, inspecting her bandaged finger. "That better?"

"Yes. Thank you," she managed to answer. Their proximity, the tender way he was holding her hand, leaning down close - _oh God, was that his cologne?_ - was all making her a little dizzy.

"What were you so galled about?" he grinned at her, arching an eyebrow.

"I was not _galled_. I'm not angry," she answered, pulling her hand from his warm grasp. He straightened and stared down at her, eyebrow still arched.

"Right, Weasley," he drawled, sitting back down. "So what did Potter want to tell you? To stay away from me?"

"Yeah, pretty much," she answered.

"And what'd you say? That you'd be a good girl and keep away from the dirty Death Eater?"

"Is that what I should have said? Oh, bugger, and there I wasted all that time defending you," she said, trying to sound casual, as she examined her dressed finger.

"Why on Earth would you do something as stupid as that?"

"It's stupid? To defend your friends?"

"Ah, there you go again, saying we're friends," he smirked.

She swallowed nervously before looking up at him. "So about earlier?"

"Yes?" His eyes locked with hers.

"Are we going to pretend that stuff didn't happen?"

"Well, technically, it didn't happen - "

"You know what I mean, Draco," she cut in, her voice was a whisper.

"Look, it's like you said - we're just stuck here together - that's all. It's not as though you fancy me or anything."

Before she could think, her mouth was open with words spilling out. "And if I did?"

He stared at her a moment, as though taking her in for the first time. He lowered his eyes slowly.

"Look, Weasley," he said in a quiet, patient voice, "You're just interested in me because for months I've been the only male you've had any contact with - who isn't your father or your brother. Or Potter," he added as an afterthought, "Who's actually enough to turn you off to boys all together."

She let out an uneasy breath, hoping it sounded like a laugh. _Oh no, now I'll be all nervous around him, oh no! _

"It's alright, Weasley. We both know - we both - " He broke off, his voice oddly heavy with emotion, leaving unsaid what they were both thinking.

They were both thinking that they were not meant for each other. Not meant to be together.

And yet, here they were. They were relying on each other in their times of need, depending on one another in times of weakness, and watching as their strange imprisonment developed into an even stranger friendship.

Ginny shrugged. "So what about your father?"

"I'm not sure. He's terrified of the Dark Lord. He may even hate him as much as I do, but yet I imagine he'll be rather angry when he hears that I've abandoned his Lord for the Order. He'll probably be looking for me and... my mother."

"She's safe."

"Yes, I know."

"And you're safe, too," Ginny said softly. He looked at her and smiled. Ginny resisted the urge to hug him.

"Aren't you going to bed? It's late," Ginny said.

"Yes, I suppose we should. We'll try to finish up the moonstone by noon tomorrow. That way there's little left to do when your mother comes around. And maybe if she's free and if I ask nicely, she'll make that splendid roast of hers," he said as he stood and gathered his notes and potions book.

"That's one of my favorites!"

"Judging by your weight, Weasley, you have many favorites!" he said, having to run up the stairs to avoid Ginny's physical attack.

* * *

"Hermione, what were you all talking about last night? The raid?"

She looked up from the heavy book she'd been flipping through.

"Well, it was all Malfoy - er, Draco's idea. He'd said he probably wasn't the only one who noticed that since the funeral, Harry'd basically disappeared off the radar," Hermione said. Ginny gave her a confused look and she reiterated, "Basically he'd been off the map."

"Ok, so what?"

"So, Malfoy's point was that if we've disappeared like that, where nobody knows where we are, what we're doing, we'll be raising all sorts of suspicions."

"Well, who cares what the Ministry thinks? And most people must realize by now that the papers are all - "

"But, you see, it's not the Ministry or the Prophet that we're worried about. Draco suggested that if we wanted to continue our secret mission without rousing the suspicion from Voldemort and his followers - we should make it appear as though we're only in hiding to try and root out some Death Eaters! That way, there's not much suspicion as to what we're really doing." Hermione looked rather proud.

"And what are you really doing?" Ginny asked, looking hopeful.

"We're - " Hermione deflated a little. "Nice try, Ginny. Anyway, I can tell you that Draco's idea has been pretty clever and it's worked well so far. If we want to go up North, without anyone knowing - we stage a huge raid down South, act like we're planning on sticking around there. Meanwhile, it's been the Order doing most of the dirty work. And it's actually been a lucky coincidence that we actually managed to catch quite a few Death Eaters in this manner."

"What's going to happen to them?"

"A trial, I suppose. But you know how those go. They're all going to Azkaban, regardless of what they say. And don't get me wrong, most of them deserve it. But those who don't - "

"Like Draco."

"They'd need a miracle to keep them out. They'd actually need someone like Dumble - " Hermione snapped her mouth closed, and Ginny sighed. Both girls stared sullenly into their teacups.

"I really miss him. I don't know what we'll do without him," Hermione sighed.

"He was so wonderful to me," Ginny whispered. Hermione looked at her questioningly. "He used to have me up to his office once a month for tea. Just me, him, and some lemondrops. You know, he confided in me that the lemondrops were loaded with Veritaserum."

Hermione gasped. "I'd always suspected something of the sort!"

"That was a joke, Hermione. He sure loved his candy, though."

They both went back to staring into their teacups. It was a few moments before the kitchen door smoothly opened. Draco Malfoy entered, wearing his pajamas and his thick silk dressing robe, looking slightly uncomfortable after seeing Hermione.

"I forgot you were still here," he muttered, his hands instinctively trying to adjust his mussed hair.

She'd seen him like this for many mornings. The pajamas and the dressing robe. His tousled hair. When she had thought about it, cracking eggs over a pan, or watching sausages sizzle, she figured it was a rather intimate thing. Seeing each other every morning, in pajamas, undone. Unmade. Something they shared from the beginning, as though it were rather natural, completely normal.

But suddenly, Ginny felt rather uncomfortable about seeing Draco in this state. It made her feel very hot, her face flushed. Ginny's arm jerked toward her, a nervous twitch, sending her teacup crashing to the floor.

"Oh bugger, I'll get that," she mumbled, leaning down. Her arm other arm swept across the table, knocking over the sugar bowl. Ginny realized she probably was likely to do more damage with each move, so she straightened up, arms at her sides and pleadingly stared ahead at Hermione.

Hermione waved her wand and reformed the teacup on the floor. She righted the sugarbowl with her free hand, and she leaned conspiratorially over the table and whispered, "Tonks? Is that you?" Ginny shot her a glare.

Draco bent to pick up the teacup on the floor. He placed it in the sink. "Nice work, Weasley! Two cups in as many days! Going for a record?"

"Oh, stuff it, Malfoy," she said, determined to sit absolutely still.

"Well at least you didn't hurt yourself this time," he said, smirking.

Hermione stood and shuffled to the door, saying, "I'd better see what those boys are up to."

Draco sat in his place and pulled the plate of toast closer. He reached for a small knife and turned to Ginny. She propped her head up on her elbow and looked at him expectantly. He pressed his lips together and then started to chuckle.

Ginny was momentarily distracted by his musical laugh. She felt something squishy on her elbow but couldn't tear herself away from his sparkling gray eyes to check what it was.

He leaned closer to her, his eyes still full of mirth. He smirked and said, "Can you pass the butter, please?"

Horrified, she realized what was seeping through the elbow of her sleeve.

* * *

"That's quite a mountain of moonstone powder, dear," commented Molly, opening the door to the oven. She waved her wand and guided the roast to the table, which Ginny had set for six.

"You should see the amount of ginger roots in the icebox," she replied, dryly.

"Yes, well, seems you'll be ready to start brewing," her mum said, placing a bowl of sauteed potatoes beside the roast. She checked the stove, where green beans were boiling in a small pot beside the dragon eggs.

"I suppose so," Ginny said, frowning as she remembered that Draco planned to leave once the potion was brewed.

"I think that's everything. Why don't you call Draco? And the others. I'll open us a bottle of wine," said Molly. Ginny raised her eyebrows, amused, as she went up the stairs to the study, where Draco was reviewing another set of owls that Molly had brought.

Ginny knocked at the door to the study. She turned the doorknob with trepidation.

She found Draco sitting at the desk, leaning over to whisper fervently to Hermione who was sitting in the chair nearest him by the window. They both stopped talking and turned to look at Ginny.

"Erm... Time for your roast, Draco," she said, watching him roll up a parchment.

"Our roast, Weasley," he said, grinning at her. Hermione stood and nervously brushed her skirt with her hands.

"I'll go call the boys," she said, brushing past Ginny with a tiny smile.

"You finished with those?"

"Yes, only just."

"She's opening wine."

"That'll be lovely. I mentioned it last time. That a nice red would go great with her roast."

Ginny grinned. He used the word _lovely_ to describe dinner with her and her mother. It made her heart flutter a bit.

She shuffled behind him, following him back down to the kitchen. They entered to find that Molly had poured the wine and also lit several candles at the table.

"Mrs. Weasley, you really shouldn't have gone to so much trouble," he said as he sat at his place, pulling a napkin across his lap. "Your meals are delectable even without such embellishments."

"Come now, it's the least I can do to change up the scenery for both of you. Please sit. Ginny, here," she directed Ginny to the seat beside Draco. Ginny sat down nervously, because, though she'd managed to avoid further embarrassment in front of Draco since breakfast, she was afraid that she'd have worse luck during dinner.

Hermione entered with Ron and Harry following closely behind her. Harry scowled at seeing Ginny sitting next to Malfoy. Mrs. Weasley vaguely gestured for them all to sit.

"Tonks has been assigned to take you to the Manor tomorrow," Molly said taking a sip from her goblet.

Ginny glanced at Draco, wondering if he'd remembered inviting her along.

"Mrs. Weasley, I'd like to ask your permission to take Ginevra with us," he said. Ron sniggered loudly through a mouthful of roast. Harry clenched his goblet tightly and took a large swig.

"No need with such formalities, Draco. And why would you want to take her? She'll just be bothersome, really," Molly said, taking a bite.

"Mum!"

"No, I've promised her a day out."

"I don't think it's such a good idea," Harry muttered. "Don't forget that your _father_ is on the loose."

"There won't be an issue of safety," Draco drawled. "We'll be going to a private location, with an Auror guard."

Molly looked from Draco to Harry and back. She smiled, wryly.

"She can go."

"Yes!" cried Ginny, sloshing her wine from her goblet as she punched the air with her other hand a little too excitedly.

Draco arched an eyebrow and tucked into the roast.

* * *

Late that evening, Ginny was sitting on her bed, perusing her paperback novel. From downstairs, she could hear Order members, finally finished with their meeting, coming up the stairs from the kitchen. She heard the front door open and a few voices as people stepped outside.

She put her book down at the sound of several people coming up the stairs to her room. There was a gentle knock at her door.

"Come in, Dad," she said, smiling. He opened the door and stepped through, followed by Bill, Charlie, and George. Ginny stood and went to hug Charlie, who she hadn't seen since he'd returned to England. He chuckled.

"I knew I was your favorite," he said.

"Merlin, I haven't seen you in ages," said Bill, sweeping her up in his arms. Ginny smiled up at his scarred face.

"You're too busy with your little wife, you've no time for the other girls in your life!"

Ginny's father laughed and put his arm around her shoulders.

"How have you been holding up? I'm so jealous of Molly, she gets to see you all the time!"

"I've been fine, Daddy."

"The potion coming along?"

"Yes...but I'm sure you've already talked about it in depth with Draco," she said, watching her father smile and shrug.

"Dad's been breathing down his neck about it, constantly," said George, folding his arms across his broad chest.

"Can you blame him, George? I'm his baby girl!"

Arthur placed a hand on Ginny's hair. "Yes, my baby girl," he whispered, patting her head gently. Ginny frowned at his tone.

"Ok, what's wrong?"

Her father blinked and smiled. "Nothing... I just still get emotional about... Well. It doesn't matter, everything seems to be working out just... swimmingly." His smile widened and his eyebrows went up.

"Oh, no, Mum's told you that, too?" Ginny buried her face in her hands.

"There's nothing wrong with that, Ginny," George said, so sincerely, "Malfoy's really not a bad guy."

Ginny sighed. She felt her face flushing.

"It's not like _that_. We're friends."

"I know, Gin," her father said, patting her back, "I'm glad for it. He is a good kid and he can use some friends. Merlin knows, Harry isn't trying. Despite vouching for him."

"I've never seen anyone give someone _that_ hard a time," Bill said, half under his breath.

"I think he's just jealous," George said, smirking at Ginny, waggling his eyebrows. Ginny groaned.

"Can we _please_ change the subject?" Ginny begged.

Bill laughed and ruffled the top of Ginny's head. "I'd better go see if Fleur is ready to go."

"I'd better see if I can pull Fred away from Angelina. Or vice versa!" George tapped the tip of Ginny's nose with one finger and followed Bill out the door.

"Bye, Ginny, I'll be back to see you soon. I'll definitely be here when it's time for you to... well... I'll be back before the potion is finished, certainly," said Arthur, pulling his only daughter in for a tight hug.

"Daddy, where have you and Mum been staying? I worry about you."

"Let's just say I'm grateful Aunt Muriel doesn't snore..."

Ginny giggled when her father shuddered. She watched him leave and turned to Charlie.

"I'm glad you're back, Charlie."

"Me, too. I've been away for too long..." his voice trailed off. They stood quietly for a minute.

"Gin, I wanted to talk to you about Malfoy."

She didn't say anything but shrugged to indicate she was listening.

"I don't mean to presume too much, but the way Mum goes on and on about him, I'm guessing he's a decent bloke."

Ginny nodded, refusing to meet Charlie's eyes.

"During dinner, Fred was teasing Malfoy about how he may feel about you... and despite Malfoy's harsh response, I could tell that he cares about you...a lot."

_He cares about me._ Ginny's heart sped up and her breath hitched in her throat.

"He said there'd never be anything between you two..." Charlie rubbed his freckled neck and smiled. "Mum nearly burst into tears!"

Ginny nearly laughed. "Oh, Mum..."

"When he said that, I just thought... well I could just see the heartache behind his eyes when he said that."

"I don't know what I can do," Ginny whispered.

"Just give him something to believe, Ginny."


	16. The Manor

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Sixteen: The Manor

* * *

"Why'd you have to go and ask permission like that?"

"What? From your mother?"

"Yeah, I mean what was that all about?"

He shrugged, "I'm sorry. I thought that's how one is polite."

"Yeah, maybe like a hundred years ago! Besides I'm my own person. I do as I please."

Draco laughed at this. "You're underage. Therefore you still answer to your parents."

"That's totally unfair."

They heard the front door open, soon followed by the clatter of the umbrella stand.

"That'll be Tonks. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, just need my coat...Oh! I don't have my broom!" she said, wiping her sweaty palms on her jeans.

"There will be plenty in the broom shed. Shall we?"

Ginny followed him up the stairs to the foyer, adjusting her sweater. She straightened her plait, tucking any stray hairs in place.

They met Tonks, who was righting the umbrella stand, muttering curses under her breath. Her hair was a short magenta bob and her eyes were dark green, mostly likely to match the robes she was wearing.

"Wotcher, Malfoy. Ginny. Before we go, I wanna get a few things straight," Tonks said, wagging her finger at them. "I want you both carrying your wands."

Draco flicked his wrist and his wand was in his fingers. With a wave and a whisper, he summoned Ginny's wand from her room. Ginny took it in her hand, its weight and length almost foreign to her, after a long disuse.

"And if I tell you to run, you'll do so. If I tell you to apparate, you'll come straight back here, understood?"

"I don't know how to apparate."

"Then you stick close to Malfoy, he'll get you here, no problem."

Ginny nodded.

"And finally, worst case scenario - I have a small box of Bertie Bott's beans in my robes pocket - "

"In case we're hungry?" drawled Draco, with a smirk, swirling his cloak around his shoulders.

"No, you prat, it's a Portkey. Just activate it by saying _activo_. Ginny will remember it from that day in Knockturn Alley. You, of course, were unconscious," she said to Draco. He had the good grace to look a bit embarrassed. Tonks smiled and opened the front door.

"But we wanted to ride brooms out over the fields," Ginny said, following Tonks outside. It was very cold, the air biting at her cheeks.

"Grab a coat or something, Weasley," Draco said, pulling a thick jacket from the wall mounted hooks by the door.

"That one's not mine," Ginny said, as he thrust it into her hands.

"It's mine, and it's very expensive and very warm. Now put it on and hush," he said, pushing her along the pathway to catch up with Tonks. She shrugged it on and inhaled the cold air, mixed mildly with the scent of Draco's cologne. Though it was too large for her, he was right - it was very warm.

* * *

The three of them stood outside the tall fence, reorienting themselves and taking in their surroundings. Tonks looked all around and even pulled out a strange contraption of bronze and glass. It spun quietly in her hand a few moments, and this was apparently satisfactory, because she indicated for Draco to open the gates.

He used his wand to tap the large Malfoy emblem on the lock. The two metal gates swung inside, admitting them. Their feet made loud, echoing crunching sounds as they walked up the gravel pathway. Tonks had the instrument balanced on her palm while her eyes flitted all around them. Draco was stony-faced and hugging his cloak tightly around him.

Ginny's eyes looked up at the huge edifice that stood before them, across the rolling greens. It was a large, white and gray building with many large windows. It loomed silently at the end of the path.

The grounds were vast, with hedges and vines, most were looking recently overgrown. There weren't many flowers, only white jasmine along the front of the house.

They followed the path directly up to the front of the Manor, Draco in the lead, Ginny right behind him and Tonks bringing up the rear, mindful of their surroundings.

"Soon after I got news of the breakout, I got a few blokes up here to set up new wards," Tonks told Draco, while tapping the instrument in her hand with her wand. "You're the only Malfoy keyed to the estate now... and only you can bring people in."

Draco just nodded. He kept his eyes focused on his boots.

"Wow," Ginny murmured, following Draco up the steps to the wide porch. They stopped in front of the massive white door. There was a large pewter knocker shaped like a snake. Draco took out his wand again and tapped it.

The door swung open, granting them into the marble tiled foyer.

"Oh, Merlin, it's freezing in here," whined Tonks.

"It'll heat up with a little time. Besides it's nothing a couple of charms can't take care of," said Draco, removing his cloak and setting it on a mahogany banister. He waved his wand, warming himself, and did the same for Ginny as she removed the coat she'd borrowed.

"This place..." she said, tilting her head back to admire the carved wooden ceiling. Draco led them down an unlit hallway.

"It's pathetic, isn't it? This was all twelve generations of wizards could afford? Rubbish, I say," Tonks giggled, after lighting her wand.

A few portraits hanging in gilded frames on the wall seemed to awaken. They were all glaring at Tonks with superior expressions. She ignored them, smiling cheekily.

Ginny recognized the room that Draco entered as the library. It was dark and dusty, but it was still the same room that she'd seen in Draco's Daydream. Ginny noticed that more than half the books were missing, leaving the shelves looking very bare.

"Where'd all the books go?"

"I sold them to pay off some of my father's debts. They were all full of Dark magic, anyway," he said, walking over to the cluttered desk. There was a tray full of letters surrounded by piles of boxes and an assortment of trinkets and books.

Ginny approached, looking at a beautiful crystal ball. She reached forward to touch it and Tonks grabbed her wrist.

"No touching!"

"Yes, won't you two lovely ladies please start up a fire and have a seat over there," he gestured to the fireplace and two overstuffed armchairs in front it. "Way over there."

He started looking through a book, scanning a parchment and looking over the items on the desk, taking a quick inventory.

"I just wanted to look...I was just..." Ginny pouted as Tonks guided her to the cold fireplace. Tonks started a large, roaring fire with a spell.

"No touching," said Tonks, yawning. She cast another spell over the flames, making the flames shimmer with purple sparks.

"What was that for?"

"To limit floo access."

"Oh. Tonks, don't you think it's important that I learn to apparate?"

"Well, yes," she answered, warily. "Eventually."

"I mean, I know I'm underage and all, but shouldn't I learn for emergencies?"

"I suppose. I can ask your mother what she thinks. Maybe he can teach you."

"Who?"

"Draco."

"Oh. Why do you have to ask my mother? I'm a big girl!"

Tonks grinned at her. She leaned back in the armchair, trying to get comfortable.

"We know, Ginny, we know," she mumbled, heaving a deep sigh and closing her eyes.

Ginny turned to stare into the flames of the fire.

Draco strode over to them, an embarrassed look on his face, holding a small stack of books that were strapped together with a leather band.

"Here, Weasley."

"What're these?" she asked, accepting the books. She could make out the title of the one on top: _Basic Healing Spells._

"For you to get started on," Draco said, turning back to the desk. "We'll order you some more advanced material when you're ready."

Ginny sat speechless a moment, staring at him. He was absently shuffling around books and parchments, his cheeks blushing, and he refused to meet her eyes.

Ginny swallowed and looked down at the books. She untied the band and flipped through the pages.

"Those are the training books they use over at St. Mungo's, I think," Tonks said, watching Ginny, calculatingly.

Tonks stood and went to help Draco sort the mail and open packages.

Ginny bent to set the pile on the floor beside her. She took _Basic Healing Spells_ into her lap, and flipped it open. She kicked off her shoes, tucked her legs under her, settling in comfortably, and delved into the book.

* * *

They spent most of the afternoon in the library, with Ginny by the fire, absorbed in her reading and Draco at his desk, writing letters and packing parcels for mail. Tonks had gone to check the rest of the estate, and strengthen the wards.

As the light entering the library started to redden, Ginny shut her book reluctantly and stood. She stretched, standing all the way on her tiptoes, pushing her hands up toward the ceiling. She turned to Draco and caught him staring at her.

She smiled and walked over to him, her bare feet feeling cold on the hardwood floor.

"Let's go flying!" she said, "It'll be too dark soon."

Draco lowered his eyes to his desk. "I can't. I have to finish up these letters and finish my accounting. I don't know when I'll be back here again, this stuff needs to be sorted out..."

Ginny frowned and sighed.

"Tell you what, why don't you head out back to the field? There's a broom shed near the back door. I'll send Tonks out to watch you when she's back from her rounds."

"Ok," Ginny said, feeling a bit sorry to be leaving Draco behind, but still excited at the prospect of being on a broom.

He gave her directions to the back door, which she found at the end of a corridor near the kitchen. She stepped out into the chilly late afternoon. She looked over to her right and found the broom shed.

Ginny opened the wooden door and peered inside. She found Draco's old Nimbus 2001 and smirked. She snatched it off it's holder and turned to the path leading out to an open field. There were three hoops at one end of the field, far lower than Quidditch regulation, but sufficient for practice.

Ginny held the broom out beside her, reveling in the feel of the smooth wood under her fingers. She grinned as she mounted up and launched herself into the air. The cold air blew through her hair and made her eyes water as she did several laps around the field. She flew up high above the trees and took in the entire estate. It was a sprawling property, which was very lush and green but also sterile and cold.

She looked off at the horizon, the sun was slowly making it's descent, casting a red-orange glow on the world. She hovered there, high above the field, above the roof of the manor, her wrist draped over the broom, her other elbow resting on her wrist. She inhaled the cold air deeply, allowing it to sting her lungs.

She looked down near her wrist, to see Draco's name carved carefully into the handle. She couldn't help the warm feeling flow through her as she thought about him. He was the very boy who tortured her friends and family in school, and yet... he was the young man who managed to find himself a place in her heart. And that, too, without even trying.

Ginny sighed, sitting up on her broom, looking out again toward the horizon. In the far distance, she could make out the silver glimmer of water. Thinking about the things Charlie had said, her chest tightened. _Draco cares about me..._

She turned her broom around and flew several more laps, letting the breeze cool her flushed cheeks.

* * *

Ginny opened her eyes lazily. She was lying on the grass in the open field. It was well past dark and she was freezing. She stood up and stretched, looking around herself, brushing off her clothes. Apparently, Tonks had not come to find her. Ginny worriedly grabbed Draco's broom and ran to the broom closet to put it back.

She raced through the house, back to the library, only to find it empty. Ginny saw that the desk was completely cleared. She pulled the wand from her pocket and turned back to the doorway. She adjusted the neck of her sweater and looked both ways before starting for the foyer.

Her old trainers squeaked with each step on the polished wood floors. It was dark and she couldn't make out the walls, but she was fairly certain that several of the portraits were whispering to each other.

She reached the foyer and from the large windows surrounding the front door, moonlight was streaming in. She stood there, looking out a window for several moments, watching the stars spraying upwards from the trees bordering the fence of the estate.

In the silence, she could make out distant voices. They were coming from upstairs.

She gripped her wand and made her way slowly up the grand staircase. She reached a large round landing, a hallway to her left, a hallway to her right. She stopped to listen for the voices again. She got distracted by the painting in front of her.

On the wall at the top of the stairs was a lifesize portrait of the Malfoys. Lucius, Narcissa, and Draco. They looked very regal and sublime. Lucius Malfoy was scowling down at her. Narcissa was stony-faced with an arched eyebrow, taking in Ginny's appearance. Draco was sitting in a chair between them, looking, for all the world, bored out of his skull. He pointed to the hallway on her left.

Ginny found that, indeed, the voices were coming from the left. She shot the Draco in the painting a grin and set off in that direction.

She moved slowly, stealthily, making sure her shoes didn't make a single sound on the plush carpet. She held her wand in front of her and started down the darkened hallway. She could make out some words of the conversation. It sounded like they were coming from the room at the end of the hallway, the door on the right.

"...Oh bugger...better healer..."

"...fine, just leave it..."

"Maybe...call Molly..."

"No!"

"Fine...burned badly..."

"...I'll make an ointment..."

By this time, Ginny was standing outside the door, listening to Draco and Tonks.

"Alright, fine. Let me get you back to Headquarters, so you can make that ointment and get some rest. Let me go find Ginny. Merlin, she's been out there for - "

"No need, she's right outside the door."

Ginny pushed open the door and eyed the elaborate bedroom. It was decorated in green and gold, with heavy drapes and dark-wooded furniture. There was a leather lounge near the window and a desk in another corner. Tonks gasped and spun to face her with her wand.

"Honestly, how do you always know when I'm eavesdropping? I mean I didn't even make a sound," Ginny said, her hands on her hips. Draco just smirked and shrugged. Then he immediately winced. She saw that his tattered shirt was hanging around him, unbuttoned, his exposed chest looking lobster red. He self-consciously pulled his shirt closed, even though this seemed to cause him further pain.

"What happened?" Ginny looked from Draco to Tonks. Both stayed silent. She took a step towards Draco. "Well, let me see - " Her foot caught on a rug and she stumbled.

"Weasley, we've already determined you're a worthless Healer, so don't bother," Draco snapped. Ginny blushed. His tone softened a little as he continued, "Let's just go home, I can take care of this myself."

Tonks ushered Ginny from the room as he fumbled with the buttons on his shirt.

"Did...did he just call 12 Grimmauld Place '_home_'?" Ginny whispered to Tonks as they walked down the hall.

* * *

Ginny walked up the stairs, balancing a tray in her arms. She kicked at Draco's door and it swung open. She found him standing in front of his mirror, his shirt hanging off his shoulders, a small tub of gel in his hand. He was dabbing delicately at the inflamed skin on his stomach.

"I brought you dinner."

"Should I pray that you don't spill it all over me? What's with you tripping over your own feet, lately?"

"I have not!"

"Whatever. Thank you for supper. Now, I need some privacy." His finger dragged across a particularly tender part of the burn and the tub slipped from his hand.

"I'll do it," she said, stepping forward to pick up the tub, and turning him, so that he leaned against the dresser. "What happened?"

She scooped a liberal amount onto two fingers, noting the icy sting of the gel. She started applying it slowly and carefully on his burn.

"Just a stupid parcel... it was a trap, and I was just too tired to notice until it was too late."

"Who on earth would send you -"

"Anyone! Death Eaters... Ministry officials...Potter?"

"Promise to be more careful next time."

"I..." He stiffened when her fingers rubbed firmly across his lower stomach. She took a deep breath and blew over it. She looked up to see his eyes flutter closed.

She repeated the motion, another scoop of gel, a little higher on his abdomen, another cool breath. She swore she saw him shiver.

"One time, my mum scalded herself pretty badly with a kettle of hot water," she whispered, scooping out more gel. She applied it firmly to his chest, following the splash of red skin. Her fingers brushed over the dull pink scar he'd shown her ages ago. "And...this was how my dad healed her fingers. He...dabbed on the ointment and he blew a cold breath on it..."

Ginny took another scoop and as she applied it to his chest, she noticed his head fell back. She let her breath dance over the icy ointment. He shivered again. She watched his adam's apple bob as he swallowed.

Experimentally, she let her cool breath play over his breastbone. She followed the curve of his collarbone. She tried a hot breath over the crook where his shoulder meet his neck and he reacted with a groan, his hands clenched on the dresser that was holding him up. She nuzzled her nose against the soft skin of his neck, inhaling his spicy cologne. When she reached his jaw, she brushed her lips across his skin, flicking out her tongue, tentatively tasting.

He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her away, sending her a searing look directly into her eyes. He exhaled, shakily.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Ginny blinked, and dumbly stared down at the tub of gel in her hand. Before she could speak, he snorted and shoved her aside, starting to button up his shirt.

"I...I don't know what came over m-me," she admitted, starting to shiver a little herself.

"There you go again," he muttered, angrily, fumbling with the top button on his shirt. He seemed to realize he'd buttoned the shirt all wrong and furiously began to unbutton.

"There I go what?" she asked, narrowing her eyes and tossing the tub on the dresser. She watched him struggle with the last button on his shirt and she slapped his hands away, taking up the task herself. As she buttoned, she noticed her hands were trembling. He froze again, at her proximity.

"Seducing me, or whatever it is you're doing."

"Ok, I'll admit that was a little out of line," she sighed, "But I'm honestly not doing anything - "

"Right! Then what exactly was your nose just doing on my neck?" He jerked away from her fingers and finished buttoning himself, taking a few steps away from her.

Her mind raced trying to think of something to say. Her mouth opened and closed several times.

"I was..." Her voice dropped to a whisper and she looked down at her fidgeting fingers. "Just smelling your cologne."

"Weasley!" He looked scandalized.

"Well, I'm sorry. It's rather nice. Besides, you can't deny we have something...some energy between - "

"We do not!"

"Right, so if I were to kiss you right now, you'd feel nothing."

He straightened, and backed away another step, sitting on the end of his bed, watching her guardedly.

"Well? Should I kiss you?" She found herself wishing she'd just shut up and leave. She somehow stayed rooted to the spot and watched as Draco blushed a bold pink.

"Stop this. We've already discussed - "

"Oh! We've discussed it. Yes. Well, it's not just some business transaction, Draco. These are feelings. Emotions! Things you can't just suppress or disguise! I mean, there's really no point, is there?"

He rolled his eyes and turned his face away.

"What I'm trying to say..." she whispered, inching closer to the bed, to stand before him.

"Yes?" He turned to glare at her.

"Is..."

He arched an eyebrow.

"I want to kiss you," she said, licking her lips and leaning forward.

Draco grabbed her shoulders again and held her back. He was looking in her eyes, discerningly.

"Weasley, stop. Don't ruin what we have."

"And what's that, _Malfoy_?" she said, spitting out his name. She shrugged away from his hands hurriedly. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He stayed silent for a few moments, and they just watched each other.

"I'll need your help early tomorrow. We're going to start brewing. Get to bed."

And with that, she was dismissed. She spun on the spot, letting her long hair flip over her shoulder as she left the room. She was inwardly glad that she hadn't kissed him, but was also fuming that she'd been refused.

* * *

Author's Notes:

As a request, to do something a little different, I wanted to ask reviewers to please include their favorite part of the chapter, story, etc. Maybe a funny line, a particularly potent segment? Anything, I'd love to see what parts people are liking.

PLEASE REVIEW!


	17. Jealousy

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Jealousy

* * *

Ginny woke quite suddenly the next morning, her eyes wide, sitting bolt upright. Her hands went to her chest. She was shaking, her forehead covered in a light sheen, despite the fact that her room was freezing cold.

_It was just a dream_, she told herself. She swallowed, and laid back in bed. It wasn't a nightmare, like she used to have. Just a very... dark... dream. She could barely remember what it was about... the Chamber... Tom... he was calling her name... She shivered.

Under her quilt, she curled up into a tiny ball and started to cry. All her troubles seemed to hit her at once... her dark dream, her constant fear of another painful jolt to her chest, worrying if the potion would be finished in time, whether it would even work...she missed her room at the Burrow, she missed her mum and dad. And even though all this was enough to contend with, her heart was quietly and slowly breaking as she realized Draco really did not want her the way she wanted him.

* * *

When Draco entered the kitchen, fully dressed, Ginny was sullenly spooning porridge into her mouth while reading a healing book.

"How's your burn?" Ginny asked, closing her book. She stood and filled a bowl with porridge for Draco, not meeting his eyes.

"It's fine," he answered, warily. He sat down, stiffly, and watched Ginny place the bowl before him. She nudged the honey pot toward him and sat back down.

Ginny didn't want to mention what happened in his room last night. She'd figured it was just a lapse – a huge lapse - in judgment on her part. She'd come right out and told him what she wanted and how she felt, and he pushed her away. That told her volumes.

"So, that's it, huh?"

Ginny glanced up at his smirk. "You were right. I'm sorry. That's it."

He started his porridge and sighed. "No, I'm sorry," he said, sounding rather sincere. "I'm just _too_ good looking..."

Ginny still felt too hurt to smile. She ducked her head, pretending to resume eating, while trying to hide her reddening face behind her hair.

"So where are we starting this morning?" Ginny asked, trying to change the subject.

"Brewing is going to take over a week. It's going to be difficult, we might need help, perhaps taking shifts. Tonks said your mum will be around this afternoon, we'll ask her who's available to help."

They ate in silence, neither knowing what else to say.

He picked up his bowl and took it to the sink, where he washed it with a spell. Ginny took hers to the sink and set it down. While he cast another spell, Ginny fidgeted with the hem of her sweater. She watched him scrub his hands in the sink.

"Draco?" she whispered. He turned to look down at her, drying his hands with a tea towel. "I really am sorry. I don't want anything to ruin our friendship." He seemed to consider this a moment and he pressed his lips together tightly and nodded. Ginny weakly smiled up at him. He indicated she should wash up and he stepped over to the cupboard with the potions supplies.

* * *

They spent a long morning boiling ginger root in the bronze cauldron Draco had specially bought. The cauldron was on the counter, over a large blue flame. The smell of fresh ginger was bringing back memories of the day Ginny had told Draco all about her ordeal with the diary and Tom and the Chamber of Secrets. And those memories were bringing up flashes of her terrible dream.

She shook her head, pulling her long hair back into a low ponytail. It was rather hot, standing over the boiling cauldron. She wiped her brow and watched as Draco slowly stirred counterclockwise. Every so often he waved his wand over the boiling surface, and she'd see the ginger slices dance to the surface. They stayed silent, with Draco focused on his task and Ginny watching him.

It occurred to her again that Draco planned to leave once the potion was brewed. She felt her heart sink, but also knew she was being selfish. He wanted to be with his mother, get out of hiding and away from the war. She couldn't blame him.

She wondered what would happen to her. After she drank the potion, and if it works, what would she do? Where will she stay? Here, alone at the headquarters. She'd been able to bear the past months with the aid of Draco's presence, his friendship. She let the heat and the smell of ginger wash over her, taking solace in the fact that she had at least one more week with Draco.

* * *

Working together for a couple days brought back a shadow of their friendly banter. Ginny surprisingly found herself smiling quite often. She was relieved that Draco had been able to forgive and forget her transgression. The topic was never brought up, while they worked.

"How goes your work on those books?" he asked her, adding hellebore to the bubbling cauldron.

"I've finished with the Basics. I'm working on the next book. But it says that the best way to learn is practical application. I'll need to get a volunteer job at St. Mungo's eventually," she said.

"My mother could help you with that," he said, "She has a few school friends there, and she's a very well respected donor...er...she was..."

"And why would she help me?"

"You're my _friend_, aren't you?"

"I suppose," Ginny grinned, and said, "You think she would like me?"

"How could she not?"

Her grin grew larger.

"I mean, you're a great cook, you make my bed, some light laundry," he smirked, "I think she'd hire you for herself right away."

Ginny batted his arm with the back of her hand.

"What's she like?"

"My mother? She's..." his voice trailed off as he got lost in thought.

A smile slowly formed on his lips, and he looked down as he resumed adding measured amounts of hellebore to the cauldron, he said, "She's amazing. She's quiet and graceful, a very good listener, she's brilliant, especially at charms and puzzles, that sort of thing."

He sighed. "I miss her so much. She's always been my closest friend. She loves me more than anything in the world. And she spoils me senseless."

"I've seen you with her before. At the World Cup," she said, Draco nodded at the memory. "She was beautiful, but she looked... unhappy."

Draco laughed, "Quidditch was never her cup of tea."

Ginny smiled, thinking back to that night. She remembered stumbling across Draco in the dark when the camps were under attack. He was leaning against a tree trunk, his arms folded, looking quite smug. She shook her head as if to shake the memory from her mind.

The sound of the front door opening shook them from their contemplations. Draco handed Ginny the large stirring rod and gestured for her to stir. She obeyed, watching him pull out his wand and move between her and the door. She stared up the length of his back, smiling, wanting to touch him.

They heard voices coming down the stairs. When they saw Harry, Hermione, Ron enter followed closely by Molly, Tonks and Remus, Draco lowered his wand.

"Draco, Ginny!" Hermione rushed forward, grinning. She was hugging a stack of books to her chest with one arm. She threw her free arm around Draco's waist, smiling at him, and he awkwardly patted her shoulder, avoiding Ginny's gaze.

Tonks and Remus were caught up in a whispered discussion with Harry and Ron, near the door. Ron was throwing angry glances at Draco and Hermione, while trying to listen at the same time. Molly smiled at Ginny and pulled her into a small hug. She then turned around and bustled about with arranging tea and snacks.

"Granger," he said, "Glad you're here."

Ginny looked away, hiding her face behind a cascade of her red hair, while she pretended to focus on stirring.

"Of course! When Tonks told us you needed help with the brewing, I mean... of course, we'd come!"

"We could use the help. We've been at it for about two days straight, with little sleep. And Merlin knows, little Weasley here gets cranky without sleep," he said, teasingly. Ginny knew he expected her to smile, but she couldn't, and instead pretended she hadn't heard him.

"Wotcher, Draco," Tonks said, approaching him with a smile.

"Tonks," he said, "Could I speak to you? Upstairs? Here, Granger, my notes...here's where we are, need to add the rest of that hellebore there," he pointed at the cutting board beside Ginny.

Hermione took his notes and watched as Draco headed upstairs with Tonks. She then sneaked a glance over at Harry and Ron who were talking with Remus.

"How have things been, Ginny?"

"Fine, I suppose," Ginny replied, coolly, unsure of why she couldn't be quite friendly with Hermione. She was replaying in her mind the way Hermione had flung her arm around Draco's waist in greeting. Her grip on the stirring rod tightened.

Hermione was perusing the notes, unaware Ginny was gritting her teeth.

"Hmm, looks like you've made excellent progress in the past few days. There's still a lot of hard work to do... Says here after the brewing, the potion must ferment for one month before you can drink it."

Ginny spun around to see the notes, "A month! Do I have that long?" She searched Hermione's face. The older girl was thinking to herself.

"Of course you do... Harry has to bide his time, make sure things are in place. You'll be fine. He can wait a month."

Hermione leaned over the cauldron and added the last of the hellebore to the cauldron while Ginny continued to stir. Her arm had been aching from hours of stirring.

"Here, I'll take over for a bit," Hermione said, taking the rod from Ginny's fingers.

"Oh, thanks."

"Maybe we should make up another schedule. We can work in shifts. I plan to stick around, Harry and Ron will mostly be here too, though I'd prefer if they were supervised..."

Ginny interrupted Hermione's train of thought. "What's going on with you and Draco?"

Hermione looked puzzled for a moment, and asked, "What do you mean?"

"You're always..." Ginny wanted to say 'all over him' but that wasn't entirely true. Ginny's mother has certainly hugged him more than Hermione has. She also wanted to complain about the way Hermione was always whispering with him in private, but again, he's always whispering in secret with Tonks. Neither Tonks or her mum ever made her feel so... jealous.

"Nothing." Ginny sighed, "Forget I mentioned it."

"Ginny...I think I know what you are thinking. It's not like that," Hermione turned and looked over at Ron. "You know how I feel about your brother."

When Ginny nodded, Hermione continued, "It's just I know he can use a friend, someone to talk to about certain things."

"He has me," Ginny said, glaring at her feet.

"Oh, Ginny," Hermione smiled sympathetically at her, putting her hands on Ginny's shoulders, "Those certain things are always related to you."

* * *

All through dinner that evening, Ginny kept her eyes on Draco, who had chosen to sit beside Hermione instead of her, like he usually did. Ginny had taken the seat across from him, between Ron and Tonks.

He seemed oblivious to her stares. She occasionally looked around the crowded table, at her mum and her dad, who joined them late in the afternoon, Tonks and Remus, all sitting at one end. At the other end, Harry and Ron were whispering to each other. Several times she caught Harry staring at her, following her eyes to Draco and frowning.

She looked on as Draco and Hermione discussed plans for brewing, they agreed to set up a schedule after dinner. After people pushed away their empty plates, as Tonks and Remus cleared the table, everyone began to stand and stretch.

Ginny thought she saw something strange sparkle in Harry's eye as he stared at her. He pulled her father aside into a corner for a hushed conversation. Ginny watched cautiously.

Draco, Hermione and Ron brought out a large piece of parchment and were starting to set up shifts. Ginny numbly stepped toward them, and stood beside Draco, watching over his shoulder, but she strained to hear Harry and her father.

"...no, this isn't the time, Harry!"

"...then when is the time...it'll make us both very happy, why can't you see that..."

"...I'm not so certain...it's not the best thing for her... and you know it..."

"...you don't understand...she was made for me, we're meant to be together..."

"...I don't like this..."

"...I don't care!" Harry bellowed, stepping away from Arthur straight to Ginny. She unconsciously took a step into Draco, leaning against his shoulder. She felt him stiffen.

Harry seemed to notice this subtle exchange and grabbed her arm, pulling her forward to him.

"Everyone!" he said, although he already had the attention of all the people in the kitchen. "I want to announce that Ginny and I are going to get married!"

Instead of any sort of response, everyone seemed to freeze. Ginny looked to her father, who went to stand beside Molly, holding her hand and shaking his head. She looked over at Ron, whose mouth was hanging open, and Hermione, who covered her mouth with her hand and looked pointedly at Draco. Draco was behind her, so she couldn't see his reaction, and she was thankful for that.

Ginny's knees trembled. His grip on her forearm was hurting her.

Wasn't this what she always wanted? It should have been perfect, but nothing about it felt right. It pained her that Harry asked despite her father's objections.

"Well what do you say, Ginny?" Before she could respond, he'd conjured a plain gold band and placed it on her finger. She stared down at it speechlessly.

She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.

Instead, her head swam, as her chest contracted in sharp pain. Her knees gave out and she fell backwards, into strong arms that cradled her. She saw concerned gray eyes stare down at her before she fainted.

* * *

Author's Notes:

PLEASE REVIEW!


	18. Gone

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Eighteen: Gone

* * *

Ginny slowly opened her eyes to find herself lying on her bed in her room. Her mother and Tonks were sitting on the bed, with her. Harry was pacing and ranting about how one would go about killing a magical snake. She saw Ron and Draco both leaning against opposite sides of the door frame.

"It can't be possible! How could it have happened?" Harry mumbled. Hermione was sitting at Ginny's desk, wringing her hands.

"Harry, maybe this is a blessing in disguise - "

"I was supposed to do this, Hermione! Dumbledore entrusted - " He cut himself off, shaking his head and pacing some more.

Draco saw that Ginny was awake and moved to rush to her side. He seemed to reconsider, and shoved his hands in his pockets, remaining where he was. He cleared his throat, catching Molly's attention and nodded toward Ginny.

"Oh, Ginny, dear," Molly murmured, collecting her daughter in her arms. "You feeling alright?"

"I'm fine, mum," she answered, hoarsely, aware that she was lying. Her throat felt sore from screams. Her chest felt tight, but it didn't hurt. The thin ring on her finger was causing most of her pain.

"I'm glad you're ok, Gin. I'm going to go down and help Remus and Arthur with the potion," Hermione said, standing up and dusting off her skirt. "Tonks?"

Tonks nodded. "Yeah, I'm coming." She bent over Ginny and pressed a kiss to her forehead and then stood to follow Hermione out. Draco and Ron moved to allow the girls through. They seemed to have reached a truce at last.

"So I take it that wasn't as planned?" Ginny said, sitting up against her pillows.

"Of course not," Harry spat, "I was right in front of you when it happened! If it wasn't me, then..."

Ginny ignored his tone of voice and glanced down at the ring.

"Harry, I can't - "

"Now's not the time, Ginny. I have to find out what happened," he said, annoyed, running his hands through his thick, black hair. She used to run her hands through that hair and be exhilarated. She blinked back tears. Nothing seemed to be right.

"I - " Ginny was cut off as Draco cried out sharply, he bent forward clutching his left arm. He exhaled shakily and turned to Molly.

"It's Him. Send a Patronus to Shacklebolt."

"I'll tell Arthur..." she ran from the room, preoccupied.

Ron and Harry stood there, shocked, not sure what to do. Ginny flew off her bed to Draco's side. She remembered from last time that she shouldn't touch him. His face was contorted in pain, and she could tell he was trying hard not to cry.

"He's... furious," Draco said through clenched teeth. Sweat beaded on his forehead. He collapsed on the ground, sitting against the door.

"Well... what's happened?" Harry demanded. "Can't you find anything out through that connection? It's important, Malfoy, find something out!"

Draco looked up at Harry, wincing. He turned his gray eyes to Ginny, tears finally welling up. She could see he was planning something. She opened her mouth to say 'no' but he closed his eyes and relaxed.

"No!" she screamed, reaching out to grab him. Her fingers only met air.

"Bloody hell," Ron groaned, turning to angrily punch Harry on his arm. "He bloody answered the summon!"

* * *

"Stop being hysterical," Harry snapped. He was pacing the kitchen, stomping extra hard. Ron had his arm around Ginny, while she cried and sniffed.

"Don't yell at her," Hermione, who was at the cauldron, waving her wand over the surface, trying to concentrate.

"She's acting like it's the fucking end of the world! What's wrong with you?" he growled, grabbing her arms and shaking her, making her cry louder.

"Harry, you let go of my sister this instant," Ron said in a cold, low voice. Harry let her go and resumed pacing.

Ginny hated herself at that moment. She was wailing like it really was the end of the world. But she couldn't help it. Draco was out there somewhere, in the midst of Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort. _God knows what they're doing to him_, she thought, burrowing her face into Ron's shoulder. _This is all Harry's fault._

When Remus, Tonks, Arthur and Molly had heard what Draco had done, they rushed out, hoping to do something to help him. Tonks and Arthur went to the Ministry to Shacklebolt's aid. And Remus and Molly went to check the several Order safe points they'd established all over London.

"He'd better find something out," Harry grumbled, "Fucking moron."

"Shut up, Harry! He went because of you!" Ginny stood up, angrily wiping her tears, still sobbing. "If anything happens to him, Harry... so help me," she said, advancing on him.

"Nothing is going to happen to him, stop being daft."

Ginny wanted to shriek at him to shut up, to leave... anything. Instead she swallowed her anger and went to stand beside Hermione, watching her hands working over the cauldron.

"It really will be ok, Gin," Hermione whispered. "We can trace him and get him back safely."

"How do you know it's not already too late? "

Hermione shushed her and told her to go sit down.

* * *

Several hours had passed since she'd last seen Draco. Ginny's tears had finally dried up, but her heart was still racing. Every now and again, Ron would rub her back gently with his large hand. It was comforting and Ginny suspected that it was a peace offering, because Ron had developed a newfound respect for Draco. He'd even made them all tea, which they drank in silence.

The kitchen door swung open, admitting Arthur and Tonks, both looking very shell-shocked. Harry stood and started to bombard them with questions.

Ginny ran to her father, clasping his hand. "Where is he?"

Her father turned dazedly to her and patted her hand. "He's fine, Ginny."

She breathed out shakily, feeling relief spread through her. Tears flooded her eyes again.

"Oh, Merlin, I was so worried, daddy," she sniffled and hugged his waist. He hugged her back firmly.

"I know, love. They'll be here, soon."

"Who's 'they'?" Harry asked, frowning.

"Draco and Snape."

* * *

If Harry had been unpleasant before, he was now totally intolerable. When Draco and Snape did arrive, he was in such a fit of rage, that Hermione and Ron lead him up to his room where they could talk.

Snape, who looked leaner and paler than ever before, hugged his cloak tightly around himself. He was perched on a chair in the parlor, glaring at the fire roaring in the fireplace and talking in short clipped sentences with Arthur and Remus. Draco, looking haggard and quite embarrassed, was being hugged by Molly and Tonks in turns, neither willing to let him go.

"Your mother would have skinned me alive if anything had happened to you!" Tonks said, squeezing him tight. "Don't you dare do anything like that again!"

Ginny watched from the doorway, wishing she could hold Draco, too. She stood waiting to be sent away at any moment. _A__fter all, this was Order business_, she thought.

The front door opened, admitting Moody, Shacklebolt and a few other Order members. Ginny moved aside to let them enter the parlor. Ginny took that as her cue to leave. She climbed the stairs to her room numbly. Hermione came rushing down the stairs.

"I've got to keep my eye on the potion. Merlin, I hope Harry can control himself," she muttered, more to herself than to Ginny. Ginny entered her room and closed the door. A moment later she heard Harry thunder down the stairs with Ron closely behind.

* * *

Ginny sat in the dark, blindly sorting the things on her desk. A small amount of blue-tinted light filtered in through the window. She was a total mess of emotions. Her relief was overwhelming. She thought that if anything had happened to Draco, her heart would have stopped of it's own accord.

She glanced down at the gold band on her ring finger. She tugged at it, trying to remove it. It didn't budge. She scowled, cursing Harry in her mind. He was always so selfish and needy. Everything had to be about him. Out of all the reasons she had _not_ to marry Harry, foremost was just to spite him.

She straightened the stack of healing books next to her schoolbooks. She took her book of basic healing spells off the pile and flipped it open. She looked down at the inside of the cover. There was a large stamp with the St. Mungo's logo. Below it was a short message: _To Narcissa, our most gracious benefactor_. Ginny carefully closed the book and set it back on top of the pile. She had only recently noticed that the books belonged to Draco's mother. She'd wanted to ask him about it, but hadn't gotten the chance.

She pursed her lips and scanned the trinkets and pranks on her desk. She finally found the small box she'd been looking for. She spun it in her hands, wondering what she'd see if she opened the Daydream Charm now. She put it back down.

There was a knock at her door. Without waiting for an answer, it swung open. Draco stepped in, closing it behind him. He pressed his back to the door. Ginny stood in shock.

"I couldn't stand it any longer. I needed to get away from Potter," he said, smirking. Ginny blinked back tears at seeing him again. She wanted very much to hug him at that moment. She sniffed and picked up her pillow. She flung it at his head.

"You bastard!" she shrieked. She advanced on him with her fists clenched. "You're a fucking moron! How could you - "

Before she could swing at him, he gently grabbed her wrist.

"Weasley, that is _not_ how one greets a friend."

"Don't call me Weasley!"

"Alright then, Ginevra."

She groaned, and wrenched her wrist from his grasp.

"How could you do that to me?"

"I didn't do anything _to_ you," he drawled. He sat on her bed and kicked off his shoes. He laid back, resting his wrist across his brow. It took all her will power not to just fling herself atop him.

"Fucking idiot," she growled under her breath. "Harry was right."

Draco moaned, "Oh, please don't mention him. I've had it with Potter. He's acting like it's the end of the bloody world."

Ginny shuddered at his choice of words. _Had he heard that I'd been hysterical when he left?_

"Are you going to tell me what happened?"

"No."

Ginny snorted. She paced her small room, as Harry had been doing earlier.

"Congratulations, by the way," Draco drawled, peering at her from under his forearm. She stopped and stared at him.

"For what?"

"You're getting married," he whispered.

"I hate Harry," she whispered back. She slowly sat down at the foot of her bed.

"No, you don't."

"I don't want to marry him."

"Why are you telling me that?" Draco scowled, sitting up, wrapping his arms around his bent knees.

"What about us, Draco?"

He stared down at her with his piercing gray eyes, silently.

"Forget that, I...I...I'm...just so glad you're ok," she stammered, standing up and turning away.

They remained silent for a few minutes. Ginny watched the snow fall outside her window, and shivered as she realized her room was rather cold.

"Snape's offered to look over my notes for the potion."

She nodded.

"He's probably not sticking around for long, though. They'll have other plans for him."

"I suppose you can't tell me if he's - "

"I can't."

Ginny walked over to the door and picked up her pillow from the floor.

"I saw my father tonight," he said quietly. Ginny hugged the pillow to her chest. He continued, "He was...I barely recognized him. He's..." Draco lowered his head a moment. "He's a different man now."

Ginny tossed the pillow on the foot of her bed. Ignoring reason, she sat down next to Draco and wrapped her arms around his neck. He rested his head on hers and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I don't want him anywhere near my mother," he whispered, choking up with emotion.

"She's safe. You'll see her soon," Ginny murmured, reveling in his touch. She again felt tears prick her eyes, the realization that he'd be leaving striking her again.

"I'd better get back down to see Snape," he said, pulling away from her gently. She nodded. He pulled his shoes back on.

"I'm so glad you're ok," she said, watching him walk to her door. He nodded, and left without looking back.

* * *

The next morning, Ginny stood outside the kitchen door, listening in on Hermione and Draco.

"There were very few corrections Snape needed to make," Hermione said, shuffling parchments. "Fortunately they're regarding things we haven't done yet."

"Mmm," Draco agreed. "You've got the schedule set up?"

"Yes, I divided the shifts up between you and me. I added Ginny and Ron in to help us out as needed. But Harry...well..."

"Mmm," Draco said again. "When'd he leave?"

"Very early this morning. He told Ron and me where he's going, but we're not to tell anyone else."

"Of course. Heaven forbid Potter misses out on being the hero."

"It's not like that...he's...it's very complicated."

"I don't care."

"Anyway, it'll be at least 5 more days until the potion is done. Then it'll need to ferment for...let's see..." Ginny heard more parchments rustling. "Snape says 28 days."

"Sounds about right."

There was a long pause.

"Tonks said your arrangements are ready. She had to add extra precautions, she said. You can leave in about a week."

"That's plenty of time to get the potion done, then."

"Have you thought about - " Hermione stopped dead in the middle of her question. The door flew open exposing Ginny and Hermione gasped. Draco was twirling his wand in his hand, smirking at her.

"He always knows. Always," Ginny whined, slouching in. She poured herself some tea from a steaming pot on the table. Before she could take a sip, Draco assigned her a shift stirring the cauldron.

* * *

It was shortly after lunchtime that Ginny's mother entered the kitchen, carrying several bags of groceries. Ginny snapped out of her trance in front of the cauldron and smiled at her.

"Oh, the brewing coming along alright, then?" her mum asked, unpacking supplies and putting them away.

Ginny nodded and went back to stirring, as she'd been instructed by Draco to do.

"I'd better find Draco, I've got mail for him," Molly said, pulling out a stack of letters.

"He's up in the study."

"Alright, be right back, dear."

Ginny nodded, turning back to the cauldron, watching the dark purple liquid swirl around and around. She licked her parched lips and sighed. She was eager to get away from the cauldron for a bit, but she knew this was more important than the bath she was yearning for.

Hermione and Ron had left just after breakfast, promising to be back in the afternoon to relieve Ginny.

Her mum came back down, looking a little bewildered. She slowly began to prepare an early dinner.

"Is everything...alright, dear?"

Ginny shrugged, not sure what her mother was talking about. She kept her gaze focused on the bubbling potion.

"Well...Draco is just catching up on his mail, but..." Molly hesitated before continuing. She shook her head and continued preparing the meal.

After a few minutes, Draco stormed into the kitchen, stalking right up to Ginny's mother.

"What is this?" he demanded, "Why didn't you bring this earlier?"

He thrust a letter into Molly's hands. She read it carefully, frowning at the tone of voice Draco used. He'd never spoken to her that way before.

"Oh, dear Merlin...Draco, I..." Ginny watched her mum speechless in the face of Draco's rage.

"I have to leave," he said, "Right away."

"But Draco - "

"I _have_ to go...please try to understand," he turned and rushed out of the kitchen. Molly rushed after him, the letter flying from her hands to the kitchen table. Ginny stood, helpless, at the cauldron, wondering what she should do.

He was leaving.

"Oh, fuck it," Ginny said, abandoning the cauldron and grabbing the letter off the table. Her eyes scanned the short letter quickly:

_My Draco,_

_Our security in Paris has been compromised. Your aunt and I have decided to go underground. When it's safe, we'll send word for you to join us immediately. I love you, please stay safe and promise to be careful._

_Love, __Your mother_

Ginny felt her trembling fingers shake as she flung the letter back on the table. She rushed up the stairs to find Draco hurriedly coming down from his room with a bag of his things, her mother closely on his heels, with tears in her eyes.

"Please, Mrs. Weasley, try to understand, I _have_ to go," he panted, "You need to call for Granger, immediately. She's the only one who knows the potion well enough to complete it. Have her back here right away."

He set down his bag at the door and shrugged on his coat. As he buttoned, he turned to Ginny. He seemed to slow down, gazing at her, memorizing her face.

"Weas - " Draco's voice broke, he cleared his throat and started again. "Ginevra. Strain out the ginger roots and burn them. Take the cauldron off the flames and wait for Granger, she can pick up where we left off."

She nodded, numbly, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Are you going to come back?" she managed to whisper.

Instead of answering, he turned to Molly and kissed her cheek. He pulled his cloak around his shoulders, considering Ginny. He seemed to hesitate about something and finally he turned around, picking up his bag and rushing out the door into the snow.

Ginny stood at the door, leaning against the frame, watching him spin and disappear from the afternoon snowfall. When she was finally sure he'd gone, Ginny turned to her mother's shoulder and cried in earnest.

* * *

"I never want to see him again. Or Harry, for that matter," she scowled as she paced the kitchen. Ron was at the table, listening to her, working his way through a box of Bertie Bott's. Hermione was at the cauldron, adding measured amounts of ingredients.

"Be reasonable, Ginny," Ron said, "He had to go...for his mother."

It bothered her that Ron was siding with Draco. She frowned and crossed her arms.

"He'd better be careful or I'll wring his neck if I see him again."

"Draco will be fine, Gin, stop fretting," Hermione said.

"That's the second time in as many days that he just ups and leaves me!"

Ron snickered at this and ducked his head down.

"What's so funny?"

"Hermione's right. You've got it bad," he smiled. Ginny gasped and glared at the back of Hermione's head. The older girl didn't turn around.

"Ron, you arse, I told you that in secret," she hissed.

"Well it doesn't matter anyway," Ginny sighed, collapsing on the bench across from Ron. "He's not interested in me."

Ron snickered again.

"What?" Ginny snarled.

"You're so daft."

"Oh, please, like you're a relationship expert!"

"By comparison I feel like a bloody genius. If you think Draco's not interested in you, you are bloody daft."

Ginny's jaw dropped. "Ron! You just... don't know anything about anything!"

"Yeah? Watch this," he stood and in one swift motion he scooped Hermione up in his arms and planted a kiss right on her mouth. She seemed shocked for a moment, but immediately relaxed and kissed him back.

Ginny stifled her giggles behind her hand. It warmed her heart to see the two openly admit their feelings for each other.

* * *

She stood and pulled on her dressing gown. She looked out the window, it was still dark out. She saw that it was still snowing.

She slipped into her bed slippers and shuffled down to the kitchen. She saw that Hermione was at the cauldron.

"Morning," Ginny yawned. "I'm here to relieve you."

"Oh, thank goodness," Hermione stretched. She leaned over to get out the notes for Ginny to follow.

"Any news?" Ginny asked. Hermione immediately understood what she meant.

"No."

"What happened the other night? When Draco came back with Snape?"

"I can't really tell you," Hermione said. "Basically I can tell you that Snape killed Nagini, that's Voldemort's snake."

"So? What's - " She froze, seeming to realize the importance of that. When Snape killed the snake, she had felt her chest explode. That was the fourth time that had happened.

"How many are left, Hermione?"

Hermione looked shocked. "Two."

"And then?"

"And then Harry goes for Voldemort."

Ginny nodded and took the papers from Hermione's hand.

* * *

In the late afternoon, when she'd been relieved of her shift by Ron, she decided to relax by the fire in the study and work on her knitting.

Hermione came in to see her.

"I'm sorry that I told Ron what I was thinking."

"Well, you were right," Ginny said.

"It's not my place, but I just thought you should know that Draco- "

"He's not interested, Hermione. He just needs me as a friend."

"Merlin, you're both very stubborn," Hermione muttered.

"Everyone seems to think they know what's going on! You all think you know what I'm feeling, but nobody does, Hermione!"

"Well, what are you feeling?"

Ginny glanced down at her ring.

"It doesn't matter anymore."

"It matters, of course it matters, Gin!"

"I tried to kiss him," Ginny whispered, still staring at her ring. "He pushed me away, Hermione. He doesn't want me."

"Oh, Ginny," Hermione sighed. She seemed to decide something. "I think there's something you should see."

"What's that?"

"I found this amongst Draco's notes when he had asked for help on the potion. When I confronted him about it, he was very defensive and acting a lot like you are now," Hermione said, as she went to Draco's desk and shuffled through some parchments. She seemed to find a particular one. She held it out to Ginny.

Ginny took it. Before she could even look down, Hermione left the room, saying, "I'll give you some privacy."

The paper had her name written at the top. It was written on a scrap piece of parchment, and looked well worn. The ink had been smeared several times and things were crossed out and rewritten. There were scribbles in the margins and often it was just her name written over and over.

In the light of the flickering fire she read what looked like a list:

_Ginny_

_Her red hair  
The way she holds her knitting needles  
__Her sneezes  
__Her maroon-colored dress  
__Her dimples  
__The way she rolls her eyes  
__Her eyes  
__Her tiny hands  
__Her laugh  
__The way she cooks  
__Her eyelashes  
__Her bare feet  
__Her thin coat  
__Her freckles  
__Her mismatched socks  
__The way she tucks her hair behind her ears  
__The way she stares at me_

She stood motionless for a long time, reading and rereading the list. Her heart raced and her face flushed. Her breath caught in her throat. She looked down at her hand and tugged uselessly at the ring. It didn't move. She tried more fervently, desperately needing to be free of it. It didn't budge. Ginny looked down at the list in her hand, and collapsed back into the armchair by the fire. She hugged the parchment to her chest with tears slipping down her cheeks.

She needed Draco back soon.


	19. The List

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Nineteen: The List

* * *

Ginny found herself knitting in front of the fire in the study. It felt very cozy, watching the snow coming down outside, the flicker of orange and red light dancing on the walls. She snuggled deeper into her armchair, adjusting the blanket across her lap.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a cloaked figure approach. She turned to it, smiling hopefully. She gripped a handful of the cloak and pulled. It fell away, revealing a tall young man with black hair and dark eyes. She cried out, terrified at what she was seeing. She fell out of her chair, scrambling to get away from him.

"Oh, little Ginevra, you always come back to me, don't you?" he hissed, grabbing her arms and yanking her to her feet.

"No! No...Tom...," she moaned, struggling against his grip, starting to cry, devastated at finding this nightmare instead of Draco.

"Aw, tears? Of joy? Have you missed me, Ginevra?" He leaned close, brushing his nose against her cheek. She shook in fear and rage. She wanted to lash out at him, to run away, but suddenly she found herself immobilized.

"Please...no...," she cried. She felt helpless in his presence. She wept as the hopeless feeling washed over her. She'd never be free of him. Ever.

"I told you before... you're mine, Ginevra. I don't intend to let you leave me."

* * *

"Ginny!"

The sound of her name snapped her out of her trance. She felt strong arms envelope her.

"Oh, Ron!" she bawled into his shoulder.

"Merlin, this is the third time this week that I've found you just staring at the wall and crying!" he said. "What on earth is going on?"

He pulled her away, looking into her eyes. Ginny glanced down at the torn paper package in her hands. He took it and read aloud, "Daydream Charm."

"It's not working," she sniffled. "It's all wrong."

"I should tell Mum about this," he muttered. "And about how you're climbing into my bed in the middle of the night. Nearly every night!"

"It's just stupid nightmares, Ron. Please don't tell Mum, she'll just worry for nothing."

Ron eyed her, disbelievingly.

"I'm fine, Ron. I promise I won't mess with these anymore," Ginny said, handing him the unused Daydream Charms from her desk.

He took them silently. He stood and went to the door of her room. "Hermione says dinner is almost ready. Go wash up."

Ginny nodded absently.

* * *

_It's only been two weeks. _ Ginny hadn't seen Draco, or Harry, for two weeks. Ginny thought the days went by far too slowly.

It felt very strange living at Headquarters with Ron and Hermione for company. They treated her like she was a delicate glass doll. Worse still, sometimes they treated her like she was on her death bed.

The potion was finished brewing and had been sealed up in vials to ferment. In about 20 days, she would be able to drink it.

She had plenty of free time now, but she couldn't bring herself to read more of her healing books or her schoolbooks. She spent most of her time knitting, the mindless motion of the needles clicking helped her pass the time.

In those two weeks, she had completed scarves for everyone she knew. _Two more weeks until Christmas_, she thought.

She found reasons to duck out of spending time with Ron and Hermione. She missed quite a few meals, too, mostly by pretending to be sleeping when one of them came to call her. She lost weight, her clothes hanging off her tiny frame.

Ginny had hoped that the Daydream Charms would offer her a chance to see Draco again. But each time she used one, it wasn't Draco waiting for her, it was Tom, along with her worst nightmares.

Her nightmares. They'd returned, full force, haunting her most nights with images of Tom, scenes of the Chamber and Hogwarts, and some horrifying visions that she'd never seen before. Whenever she woke in a cold sweat, she'd climb into Ron's bed, like she used to do when she had nightmares as a little girl, and let his warmth and even breathing help her drift back to sleep.

Ginny stood and stretched, putting all these thoughts aside. She shivered, the entire house was colder than ever before, as the main thrust of winter was finally upon them.

_I'd better eat, or Hermione will throw a fit_. She went to wash her hands and face.

* * *

They ate in silence, the sound of forks scrapping plates the only noise in the entire house.

"She was doing it again," Ron told Hermione.

"Ginny!" Hermione was outraged, but too exhausted to be stern. "We've told you not to - "

"I know, I know!"

"She's slipping," Ron said, meaningfully to Hermione. "It's just getting worse and worse, Hermione. What can we do?"

"Stop talking about me like I'm not even here," Ginny growled, shoveling her dinner into her mouth, mechanically.

"You've got to understand, Gin, your mood...well, you've gotten rather...," Hermione searched for the right word.

"Dark," grumbled Ron, forking food into his mouth.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?" Ginny snapped, flinging her fork onto her plate.

"There's nothing _you_ can do," Hermione said, frowning.

They sat silently for a bit. Ginny absently tugged on her ring.

"Hopefully once you take this potion, it'll help to..."

"Help to get rid of Tom? To get rid of Voldemort," Ginny scoffed, "Somehow I doubt it."

"Don't talk like that," Hermione whispered. "It'll work! It has to - "

"It's not going to work. It's not going to be enough."

"Well, what more could be done? Draco and Hermione worked hard on this bloody potion! Even Snape admitted it was rather ingenious. It's got to work!" Ron said.

Ginny looked at her brother, sadly, and hugged her arms around herself. She didn't want to say aloud what she thought she needed.

* * *

Ginny was rubbing the sleep from her eyes, listening to the shouting coming from downstairs.

Sensing the urgency in the voices downstairs, she knew something serious had happened. She flung herself from her bed, not bothering with her robe or slippers. She flew down the stairs and in the kitchen she found most of the Order, all speaking at once. None of them seemed to register the fact she was there.

Her father was raising his hands, trying to quiet the crowd. When they'd mostly settled down, he gestured for Shacklebolt, who seemed lost in thought, to speak.

"We've called this emergency meeting today to announce that last night ten Death Eaters were captured!"

Ginny heard happy murmurs spread through the kitchen. But judging by the frown on Shacklebolt's face, there was more.

He raised his voice to say, "Amongst them was Draco Malfoy."

Everyone in the room instantly quieted down. Ginny was sure her heart stopped. She struggled to breath.

"Well, what's going to happen to him?" she heard Bill ask.

"A trial," Shacklebolt said, sighing. There were gasps and groans throughout the room. Ginny's head began to spin.

* * *

"Harry, please," Ginny cried, "You've got to do something!"

"I don't see why I should do anything for _him_."

"Please, Harry, his life is at stake here. I don't - "

"Why do you care so much? Your potion is finished, you don't need him for anything anymore."

"He saved my life with that potion! I owe him - "

"You _owe_ him? Or is it something else?" he growled. He spun around, running his hands through his hair. "He got caught. Maybe he deserves to rot in prison."

"Harry, no!" she wailed.

Ginny turned to Hermione for help, but the older girl had decided to stay silent. She was standing with her arms folded, tears flowing down her cheeks, next to Ron, who also looked rather upset.

"I want you to be honest and tell me why you think I should do anything for him," Harry whispered, in a quiet, dangerous tone.

"I...," Ginny paused, wondering to herself if she really could be that honest with Harry.

"Tell me," he demanded. "Why do you think I should help that Death Eater?"

"He's not a Death Eater anymore, you know that! He never _really_ was a Death Eater to begin with!"

"He's got the Mark, he's a fucking Death Eater! I can't compromise the Order...all our secrets... for him!"

"Harry, he's done so much for the Order, you've said that yourself!"

"So?"

"Dumbledore wanted - "

"Dumbledore is dead!"

"Harry," she gasped. "If not for him, if not for the Order or Dumbledore, please, Harry, please do it for me."

"What makes you think I can even do anything to keep him out of prison? They don't grant Death Eaters mercy."

"Please, Harry, try? For me?"

"Tell me why, Ginny," he said, taking her hands in his, glaring into her eyes.

"I..."

"Say it," he growled.

"I think I love him," she said, breaking into tears. She looked down, trying to hide behind her red hair. She knew these words would make Harry livid. She knew that he'd always hold this over her. But if it meant he would help Draco, she thought it was worth it.

She was surprised when he gently took her left hand and slowly removed the gold band from her finger.

* * *

Ginny had been told to stay at Headquarters. Ginny was furious at her mother, who insisted she stay behind, where she'd be safe. She'd never felt so betrayed. She paced the foyer, debating on what she should do. His trial was today, everyone had gone to watch, and support Draco.

She was secretly afraid of what Harry would actually say at the trial. She worried that he'd be furious enough to convince the jury to have him hanged.

At the thought, Ginny shuddered. She grabbed her coat from the rack on the wall. She opened the door and felt the blast of freezing air hit her. She didn't know how to apparate, but she knew where in London the Ministry was located. She decided it would be best if she took muggle transportation, so she wouldn't be recognized.

She walked down several blocks, coming to the busy street where she knew buses had stops. She waited at the small bench, reading the small board with routes posted on it. She snuggled into her coat, which wasn't doing much to keep out the cold.

Ginny climbed aboard the bus with the right route number, and for a second, panicked as she realized she didn't have any muggle money. She patted her pockets, as if some would magically appear.

The driver was frowning at her, clearly annoyed.

"I...I don't seem to..." Ginny said, patting her pockets again.

The old lady behind her pushed the small of her back and said, "I've got it, poppet, go take a seat."

Ginny smiled at her thankfully and walked down the aisle to an empty bench. She pressed herself to the window, and clasped her freezing hands in her lap.

She watched the people of London bustle about from her window. She watched people get on and off the bus. Before she knew it, the bus pulled up to her stop. She stepped off, into the cold.

Ginny followed the streets that she knew fairly well to a back alley. The alleyway was empty, not a person in sight. She stopped at the red phone booth and looked all around her. She stepped in and dialed 62442. When the voice asked, she numbly said she was there to see the Death Eater trials. She picked up the visitor badge and waited as she was transported to the main lobby.

* * *

Ginny stood on the deserted landing at the far back, behind two witches with tall hats. She was able to see between the feathers and frills, and still feel comfortably hidden.

She watched as a Death Eater she didn't recognize was questioned and then immediately sentenced to prison.

After a half an hour break, Draco had been brought out, his hands were bound, and Ginny was horrified to see a large black bruise over his right eye and a big cut on his lower lip. His sleeve had been folded up to reveal the Dark Mark, which splayed menacingly across his pale skin. He was thrust into the chair in the middle of the room. Ginny noticed him scanning the crowd.

The members of the Wizengamot began drilling him with questions. She could barely hear over the pounding of her heartbeat in her ears.

"Are you Draco Abraxas Malfoy?"

"Yes."

"What is your age?"

"Seventeen."

"Who are your parents?"

"Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy."

"Where are they?"

"I don't know."

"Do you admit to having the Dark Mark?"

"I do."

"How long have you had the Mark?"

"Over a year."

"The Dark Mark is the sign of a Death Eater, a follower of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Are you a Death Eater?"

Here, Draco paused, as though unsure of how to answer. He searched the crowd again, and Ginny was almost sure he'd locked eyes with her. He lowered his head.

"We understand there is someone who'd like to say a few words."

Draco seemed surprised at this. His eyes seemed to find Ginny again.

"Mr. Harry Potter!"

Harry stepped down from his seat beside the jury.

"Mr. Potter, you'd like to speak for this Death Eater?"

Harry walked over to Draco and whispered something to him. Draco nodded. Harry stood beside him, and said, "Yes, I'll speak on his behalf."

* * *

_Harry had been rather convincing_, Ginny thought proudly. Ginny was about to faint from anxiety as she watched the jury whisper amongst themselves. Draco was still seated at the center of the room, Harry pacing beside him.

Ginny felt a wand press into her back. She was about to gasp aloud, when a hand covered her mouth roughly.

"Little Ginevra," someone whispered into her ear. She froze, thinking that only one person had ever called her that. Tom. _It couldn't be him_.

"What a prize for my Lord! He's been searching for you, He wants you. He has special...plans for you, Ginevra Weasley," the man whispered. The hairs on the back of Ginny's neck stood up. She struggled against his grip, reaching forward to grab the hats in front of her, to attract someone's attention. He sharply pulled her back, into the shadows at the back of the room.

"Ah, ah..." he said, shoving the wand sharply into the small of her back. She felt her spine tingle and her arms locked to her sides, her legs snapping together. She felt a tear roll down her cheek. She hated feeling so helpless.

"As soon as we see my worthless excuse for a son sentenced, we'll leave."

Ginny winced, more tears falling from her eyes, as she realized it was Lucius Malfoy standing behind her. The man who gave her the diary that caused most of the pain in her life.

He shoved her forward, so they could see Draco. The head of the Wizengamot stood, straightening his purple robes.

"We've reached a verdict. We find Draco Abraxas Malfoy to be guil- "

Before he could complete his sentence, Draco reached forward with his bound wrists and pulled Harry's wand out of his pocket. There were shouts from all over the room. Ginny watched as Harry frowned with rage, moving to tackle him.

Draco stood and aimed right at Ginny and Lucius. A sparkling silver spell flung them both backwards. She heard Lucius hit the wall behind them with a sickening thud. She landed on the floor and as she passed out she heard screams and bellows all around her.

* * *

"I think she's waking up...go brew up that tea, Hermione."

Ginny stirred with a horrible headache. Her ears were ringing, and as she sat up, the room around her started to spin. Somehow, she recognized the spinning room to be her own room at the Order Headquarters.

She groaned, dropping her head back onto her pillow, and asked, "What happened?"

Ginny squeezed her eyes closed, as she felt someone kneel next to her.

"Are you alright, Ginny?" her mother whispered. "I can't believe you, showing up to the trial, after I explicitly -"

Ginny sat bolt upright, ignoring the piercing complaint in her brain.

"What happened? Is Draco alright? Did they sentence him? Where's his father? That basta -"

Molly wrapped her arms around her daughter and squeezed, murmuring, "Oh, thank goodness you're alright, Ginny." She gently pushed Ginny back onto the bed.

"I'll send Hermione up with some tea and she'll tell you... whatever you'd like to know. Alright, dear? And we'll see about you ever leaving the house again. Ever!"

Ginny sank into her bed, closing her eyes. She nodded and listened to her mother pad out of the room.

* * *

Whatever was in the tea was making Ginny's head hurt less, and that's all that mattered at first. Hermione was perusing the stacks of things on Ginny's desk, looking horrified at some of the twins' products.

"So what do you want to know first?"

"Where's Draco?" Ginny blurted out, lowering her teacup to her lap. "Did they really find him guilty?"

"They did, but he's been released. Seeing as how he saved your life in court. And aided in bringing justice to his father, a known Death Eater and Azkaban escapee," Hermione took a long sip of tea as she watched Ginny carefully.

"So he's not going to prison?"

"When he grabbed Harry's wand, I could have sworn Harry was going to kill him. But when he realized that Draco was trying to save you? He...well, I've just never seen Harry so...pleased," Hermione got lost in thought for a moment. "Well, when things finally settled down and Draco had been satisfactorily subdued, Harry really let the Wizengamot have it. They couldn't detain him, not if they wanted a huge, public fight with Harry."

Ginny swirled her teacup around and peered down into it carefully. She thought she could make out a broken necklace in the leaves. She bit her nail as she put the teacup back on the tray at the foot of her bed. _Broken necklace in your tea leaves means danger of losing your love, doesn't it?_

"So if he was released, where is he now?"

Hermione didn't look up, just stared into her own half-full teacup.

Ginny groaned, "You can at least tell me if he's alright, can't you?"

The older girl nodded and said, "Yes, he's alright... I think."

"What happened to his father?"

Hermione set her teacup down and paced the room.

"Lucius Malfoy died trying to escape Aurors this morning."

Ginny choked back a sob, not knowing why she felt like crying. She curled up into a ball, wrapping her arms around her knees. She felt Hermione's warm hand on her arm. Hermione rested her forehead on Ginny's shoulder and whispered, "I'm sorry. I know I can't tell you where Draco is, but I can tell you that he found his mother."

"Good. I'm glad. Can you please tell him to come see me, right away, Hermione?"

"I'll tell him, but he won't listen to me. He won't listen to anyone." Hermione wrapped her arm around Ginny's shoulders and used her other hand to wipe tears from her freckled face.

"He knew I was back there, Hermione."

"What?"

"You know how he does that thing? He always knows when I'm there. When I'm hiding or eavesdropping or whatever, he can just...feel me. He looked right at me..."

"He focused his Oath on you over time, and now to him you represent everything good and worth fighting for. That's why he feels connected to you, how he can sense you."

"Tell him to come see me, Hermione."

"I will."

* * *

Ginny frowned across the parlor at the back of Draco's head. She could only catch glimpses of his shiny, blond hair, as people passed around the room.

He was deliberately ignoring her, as he had ever since the trial. It was nearly a week and a half ago, and she hasn't managed to spend a single moment alone with him to talk to him or even thank him.

Ginny swirled her small cup of eggnog, scanning the rest of the people at the Order's small Christmas party. It was the only time she'd seen nearly all of the Order together at once. She spotted a few people from Hogwarts, former students and teachers, she could see Charlie laughing with the twins, she saw Remus and Snape huddled in a corner near the door. Bill was playing a gentle holiday tune on his guitar near the window, with Fleur sitting on the arm of his chair. Ron had hung up a sprig of mistletoe over the fireplace, and taking every opportunity of nudge Hermione under it, so he could steal kisses.

It was all rather festive and it was making her feel sick to her stomach. She just wanted everyone to leave. To leave her alone with Draco.

Ginny caught another flash of gold at the door. Her mother rushed forward to greet the most beautiful woman Ginny had ever seen. Ginny recognized her as Draco's mother, and even in her modest dress and cape, she was pure elegance. For some reason, Ginny felt crushed, suddenly feeling rather drab in her old ruffly green silk dress.

Draco made his way through the crowd, and walked into his mother's embrace. Narcissa grew more radiant as she clutched her son to her chest. Ginny thought, _that's not a woman who had just recently seen her son. He hasn't been with his mother... so where has he been?_

Ginny watched as Snape and Remus stepped forward. Narcissa nodded her head to Snape, as he lifted her hand and pressed a kiss onto her knuckles. Remus ushered Molly, Snape and Narcissa over to the drinks table, where Ginny's father was assembling a long line of cups.

Draco stood there in the doorway, watching after his mother. He had the slightest smile on his lips. He was alone. _This is my chance_, thought Ginny. She set down her drink, adjusted the silk belt on her waist, put on her best glare, and stomped over to Draco.

"You!"

Draco put up an arm defensively. Ginny grabbed it and used it to swing him around and out of the room. She dragged down the stairs into the kitchen. She was so relieved to find it empty that she was caught unaware when Draco yanked his arm from her grip.

"What on earth do you think you're doing?" he scowled, backing away slowly toward the door.

"Wait...please... sorry, I just wanted to talk to you, Draco."

"I have nothing to say to you, and there's nothing I want to hear from you, so if you'll excuse me," he said, smoothly, turning around to head upstairs.

Ginny quickly dug her hand into the pocket of her dress and produced a piece of parchment she'd been carrying everywhere with her lately. She balled it up and threw it at the back of his head.

Draco stopped with his hand holding the door open. Ginny took a step back, feeling the rage radiating off of him.

"What did you just throw at me, you crazy bint?"

"I don't know," Ginny answered, shakily, struggling to understand why he was acting so coldly, "You tell me."

Draco shut the door and bent down to pick up the parchment. He didn't turn to face her as he unfolded it. When he saw enough to recognize the paper with her name written on it hundreds of times, he ducked his head down and crumpled it in his fist.

"Where did you get this?" Draco whispered, icily.

Ginny was tempted to rat Hermione out. "It was in a stack of your notes."

"This," he said, holding up the wad of paper, "is a list of things I despise about you."

He threw the paper back at Ginny. It hit her chest and dropped to her feet.

"That's not true," Ginny whimpered. _ It can't be true._

"Why not? I've always hated that Weasley red hair. I've always despised freckles. Why make an exception for you?"

She stood there, awkwardly, wishing she'd never bothered to get his attention in the first place.

"You dragged me down here to show me that?" he demanded, pointing at the paper on the floor.

"No," she choked out, "I...I wanted to say thank you..." her voice dropped to a whisper. "For saving my life."

Draco didn't say anything for a long time. He just stood there, glaring at her, while she fidgeted and fought back tears.

She had been exhausted from missing him, from fighting with herself over her feelings. She had been worn out from trying to remember his face, from trying to remember his voice. And now she found herself in his presence just paralyzed by her inability to express herself without crying or throwing herself at him. And as ever, he didn't want anything to do with her.

"Before you thank me, Weasley, you really should apologize for being the most foolish, senseless, reckless girl..." his voice trailed off.

Draco cleared his throat and then closed the distance between them with three steps. For a dizzy second, Ginny wishfully thought he was going to scoop her up into his arms. Instead, he bent down, picked up the parchment and thrust it into her hand. Eager for the contact, she closed her fingers tightly over his.

"I...it's just a stupid list...I...I certainly don't feel that way anymore," Draco muttered, his eyes locking with Ginny's, as he pulled his hand away, "I should go."

"I missed you," Ginny whispered, sounding pathetic even to herself, timidly reaching out to touch his sleeve. "I needed you."

"You need your head examined."

"Where have you been?"

"Wait, what you do mean you needed me?" Draco asked, taking a tiny step away from her.

"I had a rough month," Ginny confessed. She shuddered thinking of her nightmares and Daydreams. _There was no escape._

"Hmm, Ron mentioned that you were having...I didn't really believe him. You're such a strong, stubborn person, I didn't think.."

"Will you please stay?"

"What, here?"

"Yes? At least until I've taken the potion? It'll make me feel a little better."

"You've got your mum, and Hermione. And even Ron or Potter if you needed. Besides I'm busy on Order business..."

"Oh. Order business. Is that why you couldn't come to see me? Or were you just avoiding me -"

The kitchen door opened as Fred and George bounded into the room, with Harry following right after them. They brought down the punch bowl and a empty tray.

"Er, sorry, kids, for interrupting," Fred said, opening the ice box to get out a couple blocks of cheese.

"Mum sent us down to restock," George explained, as he poured eggnog into the large bowl. Harry was helping by spiking it with a giant bottle of fire whiskey.

Ginny shoved her hands into her pockets as she watched them pick everything back up. Her fingers grazed the wadded up parchment and made her heart quiver. She wasn't sure what to think of it anymore. She backed away, resting her arms on the counter.

"Come on, Fred, let's get back to the party, Angelina's waiting for you," George said in a sing-song voice.

Harry patted Draco on the back and said, "If you're done down here, I've been needing to talk to you."

Without a glance back at her, Draco nodded, and replied, "Let's go."

* * *

Hermione entered Ginny's room to say, "Draco's waiting for you in the parlor."

"At this hour?"

Hermione shrugged and went up the stairs.

Ginny got out of bed and slowly pulled on her dressing robe. She slid her feet into her slippers and went to the parlor as slowly as her limbs would take her.

Draco was standing by the fire, his forearm resting on the mantle. She nearly gasped aloud when she saw that he was standing directly under the mistletoe. He turned to face her when she entered.

"Did you want to see me?" She stayed near the doorway.

"Weasley, we need to get some things straight, once and for all."

"You know, you didn't introduce me to your mother."

"What?"

"You said she'd probably like me."

He stared at her, speechless, for a moment.

"Sorry. Of course you didn't introduce me," Ginny shook her head.

"Weasley, I -"

"So what is it we're getting straight? Let me guess... that you're not interested in me, that _we're_ never going to happen, and that for fun, you like to flirt with me one moment and make me feel like shit another. Is that about it?"

He bent his head and looked away. He spoke in a soft voice, "Potter told me what you did for me. He said that you convinced him to speak for me at my hearing."

"Yeah, breaking off my engagement in the process. Now nobody wants me," she mumbled.

"I owe you my thanks, Weasley."

"You don't owe me any -"

He lifted his hand to say more. "Potter's put me on an assignment. It'll require me to be around Headquarters a little more."

"I see."

"So I just wanted to say I'll be around, at least until you take your potion."

Ginny managed a small smile for him. "Thanks. Even if you're not doing it just for me."

He nodded and turned back to the fire.

"I also wanted to apologize for being so...cold earlier. Like I've said before, I just need some space."

"You're standing under mistletoe," Ginny whispered.

Draco looked up and groaned, "Oh, fuck."

Taking that as total rejection, Ginny hugged her robe around her tighter and turned to leave.

"Good night, Malfoy."

He didn't answer, and when she look back at him over her shoulder, he was staring up and examining the mistletoe.

* * *

Ginny sat up in bed, trembling. It was so cold in her room, she could see puffs of steam arise as she panted, trying to catch her breath.

It was the worst nightmare yet. Tom Riddle was so real, standing there, looking young, and handsome.

And he said something new to her this time. This time he had something to offer her. Something she wanted. That made it all the more horrifying.

Ginny pulled her small frame out of the bed, and shuffled to the door, planning to go to Ron's room. When she reached his door and turned the knob, she found it was locked.

It was a sobering shock. She realized that he might have Hermione in there with him. Her heart nearly skipped a beat in panic. She turned to go back to her room, but it was so dark and terrifying in the hallway, she couldn't get herself to move. _What if Tom was waiting in my room for me?_

Ginny went up half a landing to Draco's old room and let herself in. As she shut the door, she heard the wind outside start to pick up. It was cold in his room, too.

She turned around to the bed, but was stunned again to see that he was lying in it. He was stirring, slowly sitting up on an elbow to see who had come in.

"Ginny?"

She felt tears well up in her eyes at the sound of her name on his voice.

"What is it?" he asked, sitting up and flipping covers aside. _Turn around, Gin, and run back to your room._

"I'm scared," she whispered, hearing her own voice as hoarse and unpleasant.

"Well, go back to bed. It was only a dream." He said it in a way that indicated he didn't even believe himself.

"Can I sleep in your bed? With you? Please," she said, brushing strands of hair out of her eyes. "I don't want to be alone."

"Only if you tell me what has you so terrified."

Ginny swallowed back her tears and turned around to leave. She _couldn't_ possibly tell him. "Never mind."

"Ok wait, Weasley." Draco stood up and grabbed her shoulders and led her back to his bed. She shivered under his warm touch.

"Lie down," he ordered. She took the place he had been sleeping, and snuggled into the warm spot on his pillow. She inhaled his cologne deeply, her eyes sinking shut. She felt him get onto the other side of the bed, but he stayed above the covers but pulling the wool blanket from Molly around himself.

It hurt her, knowing he didn't want to touch her, not even the slightest brush. She bit her lip to help calm her breathing.

Ginny tried to console herself with the fact that she wouldn't be alone the rest of the night. She closed her eyes, debating whether or not she wanted to go back to her nightmare.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Please review! I like to hear what parts of the story you particularly love, hate, found funny, etc... I really love the feedback, you've all been very helpful and supportive!


	20. Fire Whiskey

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty: Fire Whiskey

* * *

Ginny stood in front of the mirror and shook her hair out, watching it fan around her prettily. She was impressed with the way her face seemed to be full of color today. She supposed it was from another lovely, long night's uninterrupted rest.

She turned to her cupboard, found her favorite cardigan and buttoned it over her old pinafore.

It didn't seem like it was only a few days ago that she had woken up alone in Draco's room. She was grateful that he'd left her early and quietly. Even more grateful that he hadn't mentioned it yet.

_Draco hasn't left Headquarters since Harry put him on assignment, _she thought. _What sort of assignment was it anyway?_

Ginny started down the stairs to the kitchen. She passed Draco's door and knew he wasn't in there. He was probably hiding in the study, like he has been since he returned.

She barged into the kitchen, expecting to find Hermione attempting to make breakfast. Instead, she found her mum having tea with Draco's mother.

* * *

"Oh! Ginny, dear, please sit, we were just talking about you!"

Ginny felt her face pale. _This can't be good_, she thought. She inched forward to the table, not eased by Narcissa's tiny nod.

"Sit here, dear," her mother said, patting the seat beside her. Ginny plopped down and took the teacup Molly nudged into her hand.

"So...this is Ginevra Weasley," Narcissa said, sipping her tea primly, watching Ginny with an arched eyebrow. Suddenly, Ginny realized where Draco learned to do that.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Ma'am? Please, call me Narcissa," she said, "I believe I owe you a debt of thanks."

Ginny didn't know what to say, so she just smiled, numbly and picked up her cup.

"I understand you helped Draco stay out of prison," Narcissa said, helpfully.

"Oh, that? Well, I didn't really do -" Ginny stopped abruptly. "Er...I'm sorry about Mr. Malfoy," Ginny said, swallowing the hot tea uncomfortably.

"Lucius...," Narcissa mumbled, gazing into her teacup. "I'm afraid he doomed himself a long time ago. I'm just glad Draco won't have that fate," she added, penetrating Ginny with her cold blue eyes.

Ginny nodded in agreement. Molly poured them each more tea, and proceeded to say, "We were just discussing Tonks' wedding plans."

"Wedding plans!" Ginny nearly choked. "What?"

"Remus proposed at the Christmas party! You were there, weren't you, dear? They're thinking of getting married in a couple weeks."

"I was just about to suggest the rose garden at the Manor," Narcissa said, more timidly than Ginny would have expected.

"Oh, a rose garden wedding, how lovely!" Molly exclaimed.

Ginny had an odd urge to protest. She stomped down the tiny thought that wanted to claim the Malfoy Manor's rose garden for her _own_ wedding. To Draco. Malfoy. _Stomp_.

"I've offered to make her dress," Molly continued, "Andromeda is arranging for their rings, isn't that right, Narcissa?"

Molly and Narcissa were about to immerse themselves in wedding talk, when Draco strolled into the kitchen. His surprised gaze went from Molly to Ginny to his mother. His eyebrows went up.

"Well, if it's not my girls, all in one room."

Ginny nearly swooned, but managed to translate her delight at being _his_ girl into a giant eye-roll.

Narcissa stood, elegantly, and stepped toward her son, "My sweet, we were just talking about the wedding," she said, enveloping him in a hug. His eyes went huge and he shot a panicked look at Ginny.

Ginny took mercy on him and said, "You remember, Tonks and Remus? They got engaged at the party?"

"Oh," he said, sounding more relieved than Ginny would have wanted, as he tightened the embrace. He pecked Narcissa on the cheek and led her back to her seat. Draco sat down beside his mother.

"I suggested the rose garden, do you think Nymphadora would like that?" Narcissa asked her son, absently smoothing down his hair.

"First off, Mother, she'll kill you if you keep calling her Nymphadora. And the rose garden..." his voice trailed off and Ginny could have sworn he snuck a peek at her before continuing, "I think she'd love it."

* * *

Ginny knew she shouldn't have stayed at the door, but she couldn't stop herself. She also knew that Draco would know she was eavesdropping on him and his mother, but she didn't care.

"She's more lovely than you described, Draco," she heard Narcissa say with a small, delicate laugh. Ginny blushed.

"Mother, I -"

"And don't bother lying to me about how you feel about her."

Narcissa was met with silence. Ginny knew he might have said something, even protested, if he wasn't acutely aware of her standing right outside the door.

"Draco," his mother said softly, "I just want you to know that more than _anything_, my love, I want you to be happy."

"I don't deserve to be happy, Mother."

"Of course you do, baby," Narcissa said, softly. "You deserve everything you desire."

"Mother, some...things...they're just off limits, you know?"

"I'm afraid I don't know. You'll have to tell me."

There was a really long pause.

"Maybe another time."

Ginny fled up the stairs as quietly as her feet would take her. She ran to her room and slammed the door shut, letting out a long, uneasy breath.

* * *

Ginny knocked at the door. After a moment, she turned the doorknob and slipped inside.

"Draco?" Ginny whispered, as she slowly approached his desk. His back was to her, but she saw his body tense and he shook his head, like he was just waking up.

"What? Ginny?" He turned around in his chair to look at her, his eyes slightly unfocused. He cleared his throat and looked down at his desk, and suddenly started moving things around, shuffling papers and pushing books aside. "Is everything ok?"

"Hermione fixed some dinner, it's ready now," Ginny said, hooking her hair behind her ear. She noticed Draco watch her fingers move.

"Ugh, no offense to Granger, but her cooking is lousy." Draco stood and stretched.

"Well, not everyone can be as talented as me."

"No, I suppose not," he said, ushering her to the door. "You don't suppose she went to any extra effort for Christmas' sake?"

"I think so," Ginny said as they descended the steps to the kitchen, "But it's hard to tell if it'll be an improvement!" Ginny wrinkled her nose and was thrilled that it made Draco smile.

* * *

"Aw, come on, Hermione, it's sodding Christmas Eve!"

"Ron!" she cried, setting a bowl of lumpy potatoes on the table, "I don't care – we are not drinking fire whiskey!"

"Hey, mate," Draco drawled, as he settled into his seat. "Pour me some."

Ron was beaming as he unscrewed the top of Ogden's Old Fire whiskey. Hermione tsked as he poured two glasses.

"Me, too," Ginny said, hopefully.

She was stunned to hear Hermione, Ron, and Draco simultaneously say, "No!"

"That's not fair! It's just the four of us, and we're at home! What's going to happen if I just have a small glass?"

"For one thing," Ron said, taking a big swig, wincing, "Mum would kill us."

"You have to be 17 to drink, Ginny," Hermione said, sitting down across from Draco, who took his first sip and started coughing. Ginny sat beside him and crossed her arms.

"S'good stuff," Draco said, through squinted eyes as he drained his glass. "Top me off, Ron."

Ron grinned and refilled both their glasses.

Hermione sighed and started serving them dinner. She scooped what was supposedly meatloaf onto Ginny's plate.

As Hermione started scolding Ron for drinking too much too quickly, Ginny leaned over to Draco and whispered, "A little whiskey would help this slop go down better!"

Draco laughed and choked at the same time.

* * *

"Boys! I swear," Hermione growled as she shot spells around the kitchen. The dishes were scrubbing away in the sink and a broom was brushing softly across the floor.

Ginny leaned an elbow on the table and watched the older girl stomp around.

"Aw, let them have their fun, Hermione. After all it's Christmas!"

"It's Christmas _Eve_, and for Merlin's sake, they... they should show some restraint... they have responsibilities, you know?"

"Yes, I know. They know, too. Give them a break, Hermione, you know they deserve it."

Hermione plopped down across from Ginny, dejectedly. "I suppose. They're probably up there finishing off that bottle."

"I'll bet they're working on a second," Ginny snickered.

Hermione looked up and eyed Ginny closely.

"What?" Ginny frowned, hating that knowing look on Hermione's face.

"Nothing... it's just... you're in a better mood lately."

Ginny blushed and ducked her head down.

"And I mean, you're eating better, mostly... and you're not as pale..."

"I suppose. Maybe I'm just -"

"Maybe it's nothing," Hermione said, as she stood. "I'm sure it has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Draco is back." She smirked as she waved her wand and sent the dried dishes back to the cupboards. "I only wish Harry were around to have fun with the boys."

"If Harry were around, I don't think they'd be having fun."

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah. I know. Harry deserves a night off, too."

"I'm going to go up there and tell them it's bedtime," Hermione said, straightening her sweater and heading for the kitchen door.

Ginny laughed, and followed her. "Good luck with that!"

* * *

The Wireless was playing soft Christmas tunes in the parlor, where Draco and Ron were sitting in the armchairs by the fire, each holding an empty glass, and laughing at the top of their lungs. Ron was slapping his thigh and Draco was clutching his side.

"What is so funny, exactly?" Hermione demanded, standing between them with her arms folded. Ginny lingered near the door, leaning against the frame.

"Nothing, hic, nothing," Ron said, desperately trying to reign in his laughter. He sighed and slouched way down in the chair.

"We're both just realizing," Draco said, waving his empty glass around, "That we could have been mates long ago."

"For example, Hermione... hic, Hermione," Ron said, licking his lips, preparing her for the most important news of her life, "Hermione, did you know that Draco also goes for the Chudley Canons?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and sat herself on Ron's lap comfortably.

Ginny awkwardly looked around for a good place to sit. She opted to sit on the hearth rug in front of the fire. She made a wide circuit around the room, hoping she was more or less unnoticed. She sat down, wrapping her arms around her bent legs, and stared into the low, smoldering flames.

"That's hardly surprising. You're both daft," Hermione said, reaching across Ron to grab the fire whiskey. She took a big swig straight form the bottle.

"Granger!" Draco laughed, "I didn't know you had it in you!"

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Draco," Hermione said, giggling.

"Apparently. If I'd known you lot were this fun, I'd given up taking the mickey out of you ages ago."

"Aw, but where would the fun have been in that?" Ron said, refilling their glasses.

"Ron says he's decent at chess, I'm going to give him a run for his money tomorrow," Draco said. He tilted his head back and swallowed the whiskey. Ginny noticed his cheeks were flushed and his eyes slightly watery. It didn't make him any less attractive.

"Tomorrow," Hermione murmured wistfully, "Christmas." She groaned, as reality seemed to hit her. "We're supposed to go to my parents' place tomorrow, actually." She sighed and set the bottle and Ron's glass down on the table beside her. "Chess will have to wait." She stood and clasped hands with Ron, helping him stand up.

"Come along, Ron, it's time for bed. Say g'night to your new little friend." Ron wobbled a little, and wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders to balance himself.

"Night, mate. Merry Christmas," Ron said, as he was led out of the room. Draco laughed and leaned forward to grab the nearly empty bottle of whiskey. He drained it into his glass and set aside the bottle.

* * *

Ginny was half-facing the fire, so she hoped that Draco wouldn't notice her watching him through her eyelashes. The Wireless started playing a Celestina Warbeck Christmas special, which made Ginny's chest ache.

He was slowly sipping the last of the fire whiskey, seeming to be unaware of her presence.

Suddenly, he spoke, and for a second, Ginny thought he was just talking to himself.

"God... the two of them... Just look at them. I'm never going to have that, am I?"

He finally turned to look at her, piercing her with his shiny, gray eyes.

"Hmm? Have what?" She decided to play it dumb.

Draco looked away and took a long sip, wincing as the drink burned his throat. He let out a shaky breath. "Nothing."

"You could have whatever you want, Malfoy," Ginny whispered.

"It's not that easy," he harshly whispered back, glaring at her.

"Nothing worthwhile is ever easy," Ginny said, shrugging.

She watched as he downed the rest of his drink, his runny eyes finally overflowing with tears. He slammed the glass on the table beside him.

"I'm not sure if you did it on purpose, or what, but you're sitting under the goddamn mistletoe," he growled.

Ginny quickly stood up, awkwardly looking above her. "I didn't -"

Before she could finish her thought, Draco also stood from his chair and took a swaying step in front of her, burning her with a yearning look in his eyes. Tears glistened over his flushed cheeks.

"Draco," she said, putting her hands up on his chest, defensively. She could feel heat radiating off of him. "You...don't want to...You're drunk."

"It's truly liberating, you should try it."

"You wouldn't let me, you prat!"

"It's fucking Christmas, and you're under the fucking mistletoe," he said in a soft voice, devoid of his usual snarkiness. "I know it's the bloody fire whiskey talking, but I'm so tempted to just...give in." He dug a hand into her hair and lowered his head to brush his nose gently across her temple. He pressed his cheek against hers. _ He smells so good_, she thought.

"You said you needed space," she reminded him, pushing him back half-heartedly, tears building up in her eyes. She sort of wanted to see how this panned out.

"Well, what the fuck do I know?" He nuzzled his nose against hers.

She could almost taste the alcohol on his breath.

"Stop swearing."

"There's an easy way for you to make me stop," he whispered suggestively, pulling away slightly to look at her.

He ran his eyes all over her face, his expression slowly hardening. He gasped and let go of her, nearly pushing her away.

"Merlin, what am I doing?" Draco rubbed his face with both hands. He spun around to face the fire.

"You're...you...you really can't hold your liquor!" Ginny sputtered. She felt very cold, standing there alone under the mistletoe.

The Celestina song on the radio was one about being all alone on Christmas. Ginny steadied herself, ready to harshly tell him off and then stomping up to her cold bed.

Draco spun around and rolled up his sleeve. He thrust his Dark Mark under her nose.

"This is why I'll never have what I want, Weasley. I'll never have what they have," he said, thrusting a finger toward the door to indicate Ron and Hermione.

Ginny blinked tears back furiously and said, "You're worried about your damn Mark? You're a free man, you idiot, nobody cares about your Mark!"

"Of course everyone cares! They said I can walk free, Weasley, but that doesn't mean they won't look down on me! I'll be treated like rubbish for the rest of my life, no matter what I do! And fuck me, I couldn't even care less what they all think about _me_."

"Well then -"

"It's not me I'm worried about! I don't want my wife to have to suffer that – that prejudice – that humiliation! It's bad enough I have to bear it, but I couldn't wish that on anyone I love!"

Ginny was speechless a moment. His wife? Had he thought about marrying _her_? Or did he just mean a general wife-type person? She struggled to catch up to his part of the conversation.

He was staring down at his Mark mournfully. Not knowing what else to say, Ginny just reached out and clasped her hand tenderly over the Mark, covering it from sight. Draco stared at her, disbelievingly. He put his hand on her cheek and leaned in to tenderly kiss the top of her head.

"Good night, Weasley," he said, and stumbled out of the room.

* * *

_Ok_, she told herself, as she walked downstairs, _Draco forgave you for throwing yourself at him a while back. I should do the same for him, pretend last night never happened. Yeah, right..._

She pushed open the kitchen door, pleased to see the kitchen full of people who were not Draco. Her mother was bustling about arranging Christmas breakfast. Tonks and her mother were hanging a few Christmas decorations, while Narcissa was threading popcorn and cranberries.

"So we're having a real Christmas, then?" Ginny grinned, hugging her mother around the waist.

"Yes! Of course! We thought we'd do presents after breakfast," her mother said.

"I know what I want," Ginny muttered under her breath, plopping down at the table and pouring herself tea.

"And what's that, Ginevra, dear?" Narcissa asked, her gray eyes shining with mirth.

"Er," she cast about for an appropriate answer, "For the war to be over?"

"You always seem to answer my questions with a question," Narcissa smiled, her nimble fingers picking up a handful of cranberries.

"Sorry," Ginny said, sheepishly. She swallowed her tea, and fidgeted in her seat. "Are the twins coming? Or Bill? Or anyone else?"

"No, dear, I'm afraid not, you're stuck with just us," her mother said, putting a large platter on the table with mini frittatas, french toast, and a pile of fresh fruit. Ginny inhaled deeply and sighed. It was a traditional Weasley Christmas breakfast. It was perfect. She reached out to grab a grape.

"Ah, not yet," her mother said, slapping Ginny's hand away as she magicked a small pitcher of syrup and a butter dish onto the table. "Go and call Draco, we're nearly ready."

Ginny stood, grudgingly, and walked out of the kitchen, feeling Narcissa's eyes follow her.

* * *

Ginny knocked on Draco's door. He answered almost immediately. He was fresh from a bath, his hair still wet, his towel hanging over his shoulder, his shirt unbuttoned. When he saw that it was Ginny, he hurriedly tried to close his shirt. As he did that, his towel fell to the floor.

"It's nearly time for breakfast," Ginny said, bending down to pick up the towel. Draco turned away to button his shirt. He walked over to his dresser, wordlessly. Ginny followed him in, clutching the towel in her hands.

Draco didn't speak as he slowly siphoned the water from his hair. Ginny sat down on his bed and unabashedly watched him.

"Happy Christmas," she whispered.

He lowered his wand, and dropped his chin to his chest.

"I am _so_ sorry about last night," he said.

"Oh, well, let's just -"

"Forget about it?" Draco supplied, as he turned around to face her, his hair dry but just loosely brushed out of his eyes. He looked really upset with himself. "I can't."

"I mean, I know you didn't want to do...what you did...it was just the fire whiskey, right?" Ginny rambled, wringing the towel in her hands, "I mean, it makes you act...differently."

"No, it doesn't. It's liquid courage. It makes you brave enough to do what you want to do."

"So...you wanted to swear like a sailor?" Ginny said, mocking innocence, grinning.

He slowly smiled.

"Yes, that's right. My secret is out."

"Well, you'd better control that urge, you'll be completely surrounded by ladies today," she said, standing. He stepped forward to take the towel from her. He tossed it into the basket by his cupboard. He straightened his collar in the mirror, before heading out of the room.

"Let's go. Breakfast awaits," he said, holding the door open for her.

"Don't you want to finish doing your hair?"

"I think it looks fine."

_Yes_, Ginny thought, passing him and inhaling his scent, _it certainly does_.

* * *

Ginny sat on her bed, admiring her presents. She was flipping through a book on historical figures in the field of healing (from Hermione, of course), when there was a gentle knock on her door. She thought she recognized the tap as that of her father's. She stood, grinning, book in hand, and opened the door. She was surprised to see it was Narcissa standing there, clutching a small package.

"Ginevra, may I come in?"

Ginny stumbled back a step, to open the door further for Draco's mother. Narcissa swept in gracefully and closed the door behind her.

"Narcissa? Please sit..." Ginny threw the book on top of the pile of presents, packages, and wrapping paper on her bed. She spun around to her desk and pulled her chair out. "Here."

"Thank you," Narcissa said, her eyes moving around the room, taking in every detail. Ginny followed her gaze and blushed. _Merlin, clothes sticking out of my cupboard, packages of Wizard Wheezes haphazardly piled on my desk, and my knitting basket by the bed overflowing with leftover strands of yarn. _Ginny made a mental note to tidy up later.

"I wanted to talk to you. About Draco."

Ginny sat back down on her bed, idly folding a scrap piece of wrapping paper in her fingers.

"Oh? Yes? About...Draco?"

"You see, a few days ago, he wrote to me. And he asked me for something, which really belongs to him anyway. But it was something that I hadn't expected him to be...needing...just yet. I asked him why he wanted it and he told me that he wanted to give it to you."

"He wanted to give...what...to me?"

"This," Narcissa said, holding out the package. It was a small box wrapped in maroon paper, delicately tied with a gold ribbon. "I wrapped it for you," she smiled. "Anyway today, when I gave it to Draco, he said he'd changed his mind."

"So this isn't for me, then?"

"I decided that you should have it regardless. Open it."

Ginny's fingers trembled as she tore the paper and pulled out a small jewelry box. She swallowed as she opened it. She inhaled sharply and looked up at Narcissa.

"It's a ring," Narcissa said, "To replace the one that he cost you. That's what Draco had said."

Ginny's eyes dropped back down to the beautifully engraved silver band.

"I can't -"

"It belonged to Draco's grandmother," Narcissa continued. She folded her hands in her lap and crossed her legs. "Like I said, I think you should have it."

"It's gorgeous. I really love it," Ginny said, fighting back her tears.

"Try it on," Narcissa encouraged. Ginny did, slipping it onto the ring finger of her right hand. It fit _perfectly_.

"I can't imagine why Draco would want to give me this," Ginny mumbled, finding she couldn't look away from the silver band.

"I can."

"He's...complicated," Ginny said, looking up at Narcissa, "You know?"

Narcissa replied with a musical laugh. "I do know! And complicated is an understatement."

"I'm never sure where I stand with him," Ginny said, twisting the ring on her finger absently.

"Yes," Narcissa said, uncrossing her legs to lean closer to Ginny, "I wanted to talk to you about why he's...being so...resistant." She seemed to be choosing her words carefully.

"I'm not sure what you mean," Ginny said, blushing.

"Let me see," Narcissa mumbled, scanning the room again, "How shall I put this? He claims that he can't handle a relationship right now, because he doesn't want to burden the other person with all his dark troubles."

Ginny met Narcissa's eyes and nodded.

Narcissa continued, "In reality, that isn't entirely what's holding him back. It's specifically _you_."

Ginny felt her jaw drop and she didn't care that she probably looked like an idiot.

"I...I don't..." Ginny stuttered, blinking furiously. "I didn't realize I was holding him back from having relationships," Ginny said, bitterly, crossing her arms across her chest.

Narcissa licked her lips, thinking for a long moment. She finally said, "What I mean is that he feels he can't have a relationship with _you_. And he's blaming his dark past."

"Well, we're just friends and if he doesn't -"

"But I know the real reason he's holding back, Ginevra."

"Do _I_ want to know?"

"Yes, but it all depends on how you handle this information."

"Won't he be upset with you, if he finds out you're telling me this?" Ginny asked, hoping Draco never finds out.

"It's just my own realization, nothing he confessed to me."

"So, what...is the real reason?"

Narcissa looked at Ginny for a long time, taking in her appearance. Ginny struggled not to fidget under her scrutiny. Ginny suddenly wished she'd brushed her hair more carefully this morning.

Finally, Narcissa met Ginny's eyes and said, "He's afraid of ruining you."

"That's just -"

"Hermione was just recently explaining to me about this Oath of Allegiance that Draco had taken."

Ginny felt her cheeks blush as Narcissa raised her eyebrow meaningfully.

"You may not realize this, but to _him_, you represent...you represent good...light...you are purity and loyalty and faith. He sees you as...almost as a beacon, Ginny. I'm not trying to build you up onto a pedestal, but my son sees you as a reason to...believe and to fight..." Narcissa's voice trailed off, as her eyes watered. She pulled a lacy handkerchief from her sleeve and dabbed at her eyes.

Ginny shoved aside the pile of presents on her bed, and beckoned Narcissa to sit beside her. When she did, Ginny wrapped her arms around Draco's mother's waist and buried her face into her shoulder. Narcissa hugged Ginny back tightly.

"Draco is fighting himself...he doesn't want to hurt you or ruin you. He's afraid he'll taint you and you'll no longer be perfect."

"I'm not perfect!"

"Nobody ever is," Narcissa said, smoothing down Ginny's red locks. "And he's not likely to see it any differently, unless..."

"Unless?"

"Unless you make him."

* * *

Ginny's mind was reeling as she lay in her bed that night. Her chest was aching with all the strange feelings that couldn't resolve themselves.

She thought about the wonderful way Draco's face lit up this morning when he opened his first Weasley Christmas present...a beautifully knit sweater in gray with a small black M on his breast, a Molly Weasley original.

She thought about the adorable way Draco smiled at his mother as he pecked her on the cheek.

She thought about the playful way he argued with Tonks about how she should do her hair for her wedding.

Ginny's chest hurt as she thought about the careful way he avoided touching her hand when they both reached for the dish towel as they finished washing up after breakfast.

Ginny found it hard to swallow for a moment...then she felt her chest blossom in pain. She screamed as the familiar agony wrenched through her. She blacked out, faintly processing one thought...only one left.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Please review! I love feedback and it really encourages me to keep writing! So write me a note!


	21. Chess

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-One: Chess

* * *

Ginny opened her eyes to find her mother pressing a damp cloth to her forehead. Molly smiled and leaned in for a hug.

"Oh, my baby," she cooed in Ginny's ear, "You're alright now."

"I don't feel so good," Ginny moaned, her chest was aching and her stomach clenched. She felt sweaty and weak. "Where's Draco?"

"What's wrong, dear?"

"I just need..." Ginny sat up, pushing her mother's fussing hands aside. She suddenly felt very woozy and was worried she might faint again. She gasped for breath and managed to say, "Something isn't right! It's different..."

* * *

When Ginny opened her eyes again, she wasn't in her room. For an idle second, she assumed she'd been moved by Ron or Draco to a different place. She slowly sat up and recognized the dark place as the Chamber of Secrets.

"No!" She scrambled to her feet, clawing at her pockets for the wand she knew wasn't there.

"Ginevra."

The voice came from behind her. It wasn't the sweet, charming dulcet tones of Tom Riddle. It was the cold, breathlessness of Lord Voldemort.

She spun around to face him. He was pale and ugly, the very sight of him nearly causing her heart to stop. He inched toward her, a faint smile on his lips, his pointed teeth bared, his red eyes narrowed.

"I managed to force this connection...just to see you," he said, walking in a circle around her. He stayed well out of arms' reach.

"What connection? I'm just dreaming," she said, glowering at him.

"I assure you, this is no dream. I found that we shared pain each time one of my Horcruxes was destroyed. I destroyed one myself, just so that I may speak to you."

"What do you want?"

"I wanted to know if you considered my proposal."

"What proposal?" Ginny had been fairly certain that her nightmares were her own imaginings. Had he been there, in her mind, all those times? She shivered, wrapping her arms around herself.

"I offered you what you desire most... in exchange for standing by my side, being my Dark Lady."

"Why do you want _me_? I'm nobody!" she screeched, her voice echoing off the cold, wet walls.

"Oh, Ginevra. You're certainly not _nobody_. You're mine. You're a part of me, as much as I'm a part of you," Voldemort said, icily. "I need you, as much as you need me. You complete me, Ginevra."

"I don't need you...I don't," she muttered, desperately trying to wake herself up.

"If you join me, stand by my side, you'll finally reach your full potential, you'll be feared and revered, you'll have what you desire most."

"You don't know what I desire," she shouted. "You have no idea!"

"Of course I do, Ginevra," he said, sliding up her, putting his hands on her shoulders. He looked into her eyes and smiled wickedly. "You want Draco Malfoy."

* * *

Ginny couldn't speak. She stared straight ahead, not able to focus on Hermione's face.

"Ginny, I know you can hear me, why won't you answer?"

"It's no use, Hermione," Ron said, putting his hand on her arm and pulling her away from Ginny, "We just need to give her some time. She's not well."

Ginny trembled, feeling very cold now that she was out of bed. They'd brought her down to the parlor and nestled her onto the couch. Her mind raced through her conversation with Voldemort. _He forced the meeting._

"We have to do something," Molly said, wiping her nose with a handkerchief. "She needs help!"

"We're doing the best we can," Hermione assured her, turning to leave the room, "I need to contact Harry and find out what's happening."

"It'll be ok, Mum," Ron said. He sat down beside Ginny, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. The warmth didn't reach Ginny. She didn't think she'd ever feel right again. She was horrified to feel herself want to consider Voldemort's offer. She shivered.

The door to the parlor opened and Draco stormed in, looking worried. Ginny stood up and stared at him for a moment, taking him in as though she hadn't seen him for ages. His pale, porcelain skin, his white-gold hair, the fine sharp features, his eyes...his beautiful, gray eyes.

"Draco?"

Her mother and Ron stood, surprised she'd finally said something.

"I'm here," Draco said, stepping toward her.

"No, no, no," she shrieked, shaking her head. "No!" She scrambled away from the couch, rushing to get as far away from him as she could in the small room.

"It's alright, Ginny," he put his hands up, demonstrating his harmlessness.

"No, it's not...it'll never be alright..." Ginny bit her lower lip and stared at him, panting with panic. She needed to know...she needed some honest answers. She whispered harshly, "Mum, Ron, get out."

"Ginny, we can't -"

"Get out!" she shrieked. Draco nodded his head to Ron, signaling to him that it was fine.

Ron ushered Molly out, on his way past Draco, he said, "We'll be in the kitchen. If you need us."

When they closed the door behind them, Draco finally spoke, "What's wrong?"

Ginny suddenly felt very foolish. She hugged her arms around herself. She couldn't meet his eyes.

"Ginny," he said, gently, her name on his lips sent shivers down her spine, "Please tell me what's wrong."

"I _can't_ tell you," she cried, her knees nearly giving out. Her mind was still reeling from seeing the Chamber of Secrets and Voldemort. She thought she felt the room spin around her.

"Well, what can I do...for you?" he said, calmly, standing frozen near the door.

"Give me something, anything. Tell me how you really feel about me. Tell me you want me, tell me you despise me... just please give me something honest."

He stood silently, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Right now. Tell me, Draco," Ginny said, not daring to breathe.

Instead of responding, he stepped closer to her and enveloped her in his arms, allowing her to bury her face in his chest. Pressing her ear against his sweater, she could hear his heart hammering fast and loud. She breathed him in, relishing in the warm, spicy scent of him.

"What are you trying to do here? What happened, Ginny?"

_All I have to do is say yes, and he'd be mine. If I can't have him by any normal means..._

She blinked the dark thoughts away and looked up at Draco's handsome face. He must have sensed the pleading look on her expression, because he raised a hand to brush her hair back from her face.

Ginny swore she felt magic upon his touch. She closed her eyes tightly and concentrated on the feel of his large hand cupping her cheek and chin. She let out a soft sigh, and he hugged her tighter.

"You were right."

"About what?" Draco whispered into her hair.

"I _should_ stay away from you."

He didn't respond, just nuzzled his face against her ear.

"I think I need to talk to Harry."

His loosened his hold on her, ran his hands over her hair, and then slowly let go.

* * *

"Please make them leave," Ginny whispered to Harry, who sat beside her on the parlor sofa.

Harry sighed, wearily and looked around the room. Ron and Hermione nodded and headed for the door. Draco folded his arms and leaned against the wall, resolutely refusing to go.

Ginny watched Harry make eye contact with Draco, and Draco shook his head no.

She hide herself behind Harry.

"I can't... not in front of him, Harry," she whispered, hoping Draco couldn't hear her.

"Malfoy, please, give us a minute."

Ginny peeked around Harry to catch a glimpse of Draco. He pursed his lips, met her eyes and left the room.

Hearing the door close behind him, Ginny collapsed into the cushion behind her.

"Now what on earth is going on?"

"Oh, Harry, it's dreadful! He knows!"

"Who? Malfoy?"

"No, Harry...the Dark Lord, he knows everything... he said something about destroying his own Horcrux to force a meeting with me."

"What?"

"He told me that he sensed me every time one was broken. And you know, Harry," Ginny said, putting a hand to her trembling chest, "That's how I always felt...broken, inside... you know when..."

"What meeting?"

"I just had another attack, you know, where my chest clenches up and I black out. When I came to, I didn't feel right. I felt like I was being sucked back into the darkness... I passed out again, and I woke up in the Chamber of Secrets." Ginny swallowed. "He was waiting there for me, Harry. I couldn't get away."

Harry considered this for a long moment. He slowly wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Ginny, how do you know this wasn't all a dream?"

"It wasn't a dream, Harry, I know that much! In my dreams, I always see Tom Riddle. This time it was Voldemort, himself. It was not a dream."

"I don't understand. Why would he make it easier for me to kill him?" Harry stood and started to pace. "In fact, I didn't even know what or where the last two Horcruxes are, it would have taken me ages -"

"I know why," Ginny muttered, hugging herself to keep from thinking about the Chamber of Secrets.

"Well?" Harry asked, after a long pause. He was standing with his arms crossed, staring at her, his jet black hair all askew and his glasses slipping down his nose. It was Harry. She couldn't tell him _everything_. How could she? He'd feel betrayed, he'd be repulsed by her, it'd be even worse than the trial.

"He wants me. To join him," Ginny hid her face behind a curtain of her hair.

"Why?"

"He thinks he needs me to complete him. I think he'll have his full powers only if I'm by his side."

"And what makes him think you'd join him?"

"He offered me...what I want most."

"And what's that, Ginny?" Harry whispered. Ginny could feel his glare burning her. She lowered her head and didn't answer.

* * *

Ginny paced the parlor, shivering nervously. She tried ignoring Draco's gaze following her intently, instead watching the Order members slowly arriving and filling the room. Her mother and father were seated by the fireplace, talking fervently with Hermione and Remus. Ron and the twins were perched on the sofa, remaining quiet, and offering a comforting grin whenever she looked their way. Soon the room was packed.

Finally, Harry led Moody and Shacklebolt in, trailed by Snape, who carried the tray full of vials. Ginny watched him advance toward Draco and stand beside him, whispering to him under his breath.

"Thank you, everyone, for coming to this emergency meeting." Harry said, stepping to the center of the room. "The time has come for me to go after Voldemort."

There were several gasps around the room. Ron and Hermione stood, exchanging a worried glance.

"Before I can do that, I need to ensure that the ones I love are safe and protected," he continued despite the glares he was getting. Everyone seemed to know where he was going. "I'd like to thank you all for your tireless efforts, but it is my fight, it's _my_ duty to go after Voldemort, and I've chosen to do so alone."

"No!"

"You can't possibly -"

"What's the logic in that?"

"Why?"

Everyone spoke at once, Ginny turned to look at Draco, whose face was oddly blank. She didn't like it.

Harry calmly raised his wand and shot off a small, whistling spark. It quieted the group. He continued, "There is also the matter of Ginny Weasley and the potion to protect her. It's been decided that she should take it now, today."

_Decided by who?_ Ginny thought.

"I want to talk to Snape," she blurted out. "Alone."

There were more outbursts, but Snape passed the tray to Remus and held his arm out toward the door. Ginny walked out as quickly as she could.

* * *

Ginny entered her room, and held the door open for Snape. He swooped into her room, looking around uncomfortably, trying not to let his eyes linger on anything for too long. His black boots moved so slowly, they made no sound on the hardwood floor. Ginny sat on her bed, curled up into a ball, as he sat in the desk chair beside her. Snape tucked stray strands of his hair behind his ear. Ginny noticed that his hair wasn't as greasy as she remembered from school. He looked better in general, like he'd started taking care of himself.

"So you obviously know about what happens to me, when...when a Horcrux gets destroyed."

He nodded again, listening carefully.

"The Dark Lord destroyed one himself, he said he wanted to talk to me."

"And what did he want to talk about?"

"He wants me to join him. He said he needs me and that I complete him and he completes me," Ginny whispered, resting her chin on her knees.

Snape remained silent, crossing his arms, hugging his black robes tight around himself. He eyed her carefully.

"Do you think that's true, Professor? That he and I...are really a part of each other?"

"Based on my knowledge of your encounter with Tom Riddle's diary, it's very likely."

Ginny pinched her lips together, letting a tear slip down her cheek.

"And do _you_ think that the potion will really help me?" She kept her voice low, afraid it'd break.

"It will work. I'm fairly confident of that. It's quite the masterpiece, I'm very proud of Draco," Snape said, pinching his lips together. "But I'm not sure if it's time to take it yet."

"Harry still needs to find the last Horcrux, there's still time to wait and see..." Her voice trailed off.

"I'm afraid I've deceived Potter," Snape said, twirling his fingers in the air, he produced an small orb, about the size of a bludger. He spun it in his hands at eye level. "When I killed the serpent, I stole this."

"And what is that?"

"It is an extremely old and valuable artifact. It is rumored to have belonged to Merlin himself, what he used to store his memories. I believe it has very little magic left in it, and no longer functions properly, but this... is the final Horcrux."

Ginny stared at the glass ball Snape spun between his long, spindly fingers. "Why haven't you told him? He's been desperate -"

"I was waiting for the potion to finish fermenting. I kept this as security."

"You'd risk... you think that..." She breathed deeply, and tried again, "Isn't it more important that we defeat the Dark Lord, more than anything else?"

Snape didn't say anything for a few moments.

He cleared his throat, and ran a hand through his hair, smoothing it down.

"You may not know, but Draco is my godson. I was there the day he was born."

Ginny nodded her understanding.

"I've known him his whole life, and have considered him as my own child."

Ginny swallowed, her eyes watering. He stopped there, as though that were answer enough. And, for Ginny, it was.

"You've got to give that to Harry. And I have to take that potion," Ginny said, resolutely.

Snape examined her for a long time, his black eyes penetrating her mind. His eyes narrowed.

"What else did the Dark Lord tell you?"

"He said if I joined him, I'd have greater powers," Ginny said, looking away, and fidgeting with a lock of her hair.

"What else, Weasley?"

"I can't... I can't tell you."

"If I know the Dark Lord at all, he offered you what you desire most in exchange. Is that correct?"

"Yes," Ginny said, choking back a sob, remembering how horrid it was to hear Draco's name on Voldemort's lips.

Without saying another word, Snape stood and offered his hand. She grasped it and he helped her up. He put a hand on her shoulder and led her back down to the parlor, where everyone was waiting.

* * *

Ginny examined the writhing, silvery purple elixir in her hand. She uncorked the vial, a puff of smoke escaped, eliciting a few gasps around the room. She met Draco's eyes and brought the vial to her lips. She drained it quickly, swallowing the burning bitterness.

The pain was immediate and incessant. She squeezed her eyes closed and fought back a scream. Ginny felt a hole developing inside her, an emptiness expanding and devouring her with flame. The pain finally began to subside, but still pinched her in waves. Ginny suppressed the urge to throw up.

When she was sure she was steady, she slowly pried open her eyes and looked around at the anxious faces surrounding her. Hermione took the empty vial from Ginny's limp hand.

Realizing everyone expected her to say something, she whispered, "I'm alright. I think."

Arthur rushed forward to envelope Ginny in his arms. He was crying, pressing kisses to her hair. He cradled her against him and whispered, "My baby girl."

"Let's see about getting some supper for the lot of you," Molly said, wrapping her arm around Ginny's shoulder, pulling her away from her father. She guided her out of the room, away from the scrutiny of the crowd. She led Ginny down to the kitchen, trailed by Tonks and Hermione.

* * *

Ginny sat numbly at the table, watching the three ladies performing an uncoordinated dance around the room, preparing a large meal. Tonks was cleaning up after herself, Hermione setting a giant bowl of salad on the table, Molly at the oven, when the kitchen door opened. Draco slipped inside, silently.

He didn't say anything, just leaned against the wall, and watched them. The ladies resumed their tasks, starting to talk about Tonks' approaching wedding day.

Ginny stared off into the middle distance, prodding herself to feel something. _Anything_, she encouraged herself. Ginny tucked her hair behind her ear and sighed.

"Where did you get that?" Draco said, stepping forward, grabbing her wrist, causing the others to pause in their work to watch.

"What?"

"That ring," he said, icily.

Ginny stared down at her right hand at the silver band. She'd forgotten all about it, it'd just instantly become a part of her.

"Your mum gave it to me -"

"Tsk, Mum," Draco muttered under his breath. Ginny stared at his large hand gently wrapped around her wrist. It burned her with its warmth, sending chills up her spine.

"I didn't intend for you to have that," he said, finally letting go of her.

"Would you like it back?" Ginny asked, sliding the band from her finger and proferring it.

He stared at it for a long moment, and then back at her. He suddenly grew conscious of Molly, Hermione and Tonks and withdrew back to the wall.

"No, it was a gift, you should keep it."

Ginny stared down at the ring, without putting it back on. She thought about what it represented, what it could have meant. It was clearly a wedding band, one that was an heirloom in the Malfoy family. She had no right to keep it. She'd try to return it to Narcissa when she had the chance.

"I think I'd like to lie down a little while," she said, wrapping the ring in her fist, and standing up.

"What about supper, dear?" Molly wiped her hands on her apron.

"I'm not hungry." Ginny pushed past Draco to leave.

* * *

Ginny lay on her bed, for a long time, staring at the ring in her hand by the flickering lamplight. She tried memorizing it, wanting to remember it forever, before she returned it and never saw it again. She slid it into the small box that Narcissa had presented it to her in. She reached over and tucked it behind a couple of boxes on her desk.

She thought for a moment, and searched in vain for a Daydream Charm. She really had given them all to Ron.

"Ginny?" There was a knock at her door. It opened to reveal Hermione.

"Everyone's left for the night. You want some dinner?"

She shrugged in response and stood slowly from her bed.

"Do you want to see the oddest thing you've ever seen in your life?"

"What?" Ginny asked, curiously.

"Come on, I'll show you," Hermione smiled, leading her to the parlor, where a fire was roaring. In front of it, Draco and Ron were laying sprawled on the floor, playing wizard's chess, looking for all the world like two children.

"This cannot be happening," Ron muttered, clutching his head, nearly pulling out his own hair.

"Check," Draco drawled. He leaned back onto his elbows, with his eyebrow arched at Ron, who was frantically analyzing the chess board. He looked up at Ginny, and pursed his lips into a tiny smile.

Hermione stifled a giggle and said she'd come back with a tray. Ginny settled herself in armchair beside Ron, so she'd have a decent view of Draco.

"Oh, Ron, you were bound to lose sometime," she said, trying to be consoling. This earned her a glare. Ginny leaned forward to look at their chess board.

"Oh, I see," she said, she lifted her hand to point to a piece, "You should -"

"Not fair, Weasley!" Draco moaned, "Don't you two gang up on me." Ron laughed, making a move. Hermione came in with the tray and settled it on the table next to Ginny. She picked up the bowl of salad and started picking at it. Draco examined the board carefully, while Hermione sank into the armchair beside him.

"Where's Harry?" Ginny asked, forking a bite into her mouth. She didn't dare look at Draco.

"He said he needed to be alone," Hermione explained. "He said he needed more time before he'd be ready to face Voldemort." Draco flinched.

"Can you believe him? Thinking he'd go by himself," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "He's a moron for thinking he'd get anywhere without 'Mione and me."

Draco didn't say anything, and went back to staring at the board.

As she finished her small salad, setting the bowl aside to pick up the plate of lasagna, Ginny said, "I'll play the winner."

Ron groaned, and rolled over to look at her. "Aw, but you never play fair, Gin."

She raised her eyebrow, and said, "You only think that because I'm better than you."

"Checkmate," Draco whispered, watching his bishop decimate Ron's king.

* * *

"So...how do you feel?"

Ginny had taken Ron's spot on the floor. Ron and Hermione went off to bed, explaining that they needed an early start tomorrow to meet up with Harry.

"I...don't know how to answer," she explained, moving a piece, while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Well, you're alive," Draco said, "I suppose there's that. And you don't appear to be hurt..."

"I suppose," she replied. She was struck by the strange blankness she now felt in Draco's presence. There was no yearning, no desperation, nothing. It crushed her, the emptiness inside her welling up.

"You certainly are better than Ron," he said, glaring at the board, frustrated. He ran a hand over his face and sat up to concentrate better.

"Now that we're finally at the end of the war, what do you think you'll do?"

He moved a piece blindly, and thought carefully. "I suppose I'll go back to the mansion, where Mum will be for a bit, before she goes to Paris. Maybe I'll go with her."

"I don't know what I'll do. I can't even imagine life without you, Draco," she said, finally feeling a tug of emotion. She swallowed at the pain.

"You'll be alright, Weasley. Back at your Burrow, with your parents, just where you belong..." His voice trailed off, seeing that she wasn't comforted.

_I belong with you_, she wanted to say. She pinched her lips and moved her rook.

"Check," she said.

"Oh, damn," he muttered, his gray eyes fluttering over the board.

"You can go home tomorrow, if you'd like," Ginny said, "Keep your mother some company. She must be busy with the wedding, she could use your help."

"And leave you here all alone?"

"I'll be ok," she smiled. "I can manage being alone."

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

Ginny lowered her eyes, swallowing the knot in her throat. If he left tomorrow, when would she ever see him again? At the wedding, but then?

He moved a piece, crushing her knight. She immediately moved a pawn and said, "Check."

"Damn it!"

"I want to say I'm sorry," she said.

"It's not your fault you're good at this game."

"No, I mean, I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you, the past few months. Making you work on the potion, making you...I guess, this is the end of...us." She thought this admission would have made her feel better, sort of provide some closure. It didn't.

"Is that so? We'll no longer be friends?"

She didn't say anything.

"What did you mean when you said should stay away from me? Since when do you ever listen to me?"

She smiled at his tone. "You were right, all along. I'm sorry I didn't believe you," she whispered.

He shoved the game aside, scattering pieces and reached out to pull her closer, onto his lap. He hugged her tight. She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his neck.

"The worst feeling is watching you leave, Draco. When you go, don't say goodbye."

She felt him choke back a sob and clutch her tenaciously.

"I was just about to win, too. Now who's not playing fair?" she teased.

* * *

Author's Note:

Please review, I love getting feedback of all kinds. Any part you liked in particular?


	22. Wedding

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Two: Wedding

* * *

Ginny's eyes opened slowly, watering slightly. She could tell by the extreme stillness of the house that it was already empty.

She rolled out of bed, pulling on her cold dressing robe and sliding her feet into her slippers.

Shuffling down the stairs, she explored the kitchen, the parlor and the study before accepting the fact that he had left early in the morning, without saying goodbye. Just like she'd asked.

She went up to his room and gently pushed open the door. It was an empty shell of the room it used to be. The bed was made with the soft flannel sheets, but the large duvet was gone. The cupboard was empty, the dresser cleared. Ginny sat on his bed and sighed.

_It'd all been one long dream_, she told herself. _If only_.

She stood to leave, when she noticed his rubbish bin was mostly full of small colorful boxes. She stepped over and bent down to see that there were several Daydream Charms discarded there, including a couple that were opened already.

She thought of the moment she'd caught him with a dazed look on his face, shuddering at the sound of his name...Had he taken these from Ron?

She scooped out the Charms and sat back down on his bed. She trembled slightly, spinning a small box between her fingers.

Without thinking twice, she tore open the box.

* * *

The rose garden was glowing in the orange-red evening light. A large floral arch was arranged at the western edge, the gorgeous sunset as a backdrop. Thousands of tiny lights were lit amongst the rose bushes, and strings of light intertwined overhead, casting a glow on everything.

She was alone...She walked along the path toward the archway slowly, where she could make out a shadow. As she grew nearer, she saw the green cloaked person.

When Ginny was just under the archway, she reached out and pulled away the cloak. It was a smiling Draco that waited for her.

"Draco?" she whispered, her voice cracking. She was _free_. It wasn't Tom Riddle! She was really _free_!

She grinned at him. He straightened his crisp black coat and stepped closer to her.

"Ginny," he said, brushing her back from her cheek, tucking it behind her ear. "You look wonderful tonight," he told her, his sparkling eyes taking in her appearance.

She looked down at her white lace dress and flinched. She suddenly felt uncomfortable. Everything felt empty, sickeningly false.

When she looked up, Draco, along with the archway of flowers, the sunset and the tiny lights, were all gone. She was at the Burrow, in her room. In the mirror above her dresser, she caught a glimpse of a cloaked figure behind her.

She spun around and yanked away the green cloak, now fearing to see the blond hair and shining white teeth.

It was him, Draco, grinning at her, taunting her.

* * *

When she snapped out of the daydream, her eyes focusing on his empty room, she groaned. She tossed the Daydream Charms back in the trash, and swept down to the kitchen.

She banged around, making herself tea and toast. She tried to be as loud as she could, hoping to distract from the strange, gaping hole inside of her.

She sipped the tea, wondering what Tonks would wear at the wedding on Sunday. She swallowed, wondering what she herself would wear. _Do I even have to go?_ she thought, slumping forward to rest her head on her wrist.

* * *

"I just can't believe they're getting married tomorrow," Molly babbled, folding laundry in Ginny's room. "Doesn't it feel like just yesterday that they met? My goodness, they're a good match, that's for sure."

Ginny didn't answer, just nodded as she hung her shirts in her cupboard. She considered something and turned to her mum, "Do you think I could talk to Tonks? I mean, before the wedding?"

Molly's hands slowed as she looked at her daughter, "Yes," she nodded, "I suppose so."

Ginny turned back to the cupboard.

"You know, dear, if there's anything you want to talk to _me_ about -"

"Mum, how did you know when Dad was 'the one'?

"Well, I loved him and we -"

"I know the story, Mum, I just mean... how did you realize that... you know, never mind," Ginny said, hoping her mum would let it drop.

"Tonks is going to need help with her hair tomorrow, if you want to help her," Molly suggested.

"Yes! I'd like that," Ginny smiled.

* * *

In a large guest room in the Malfoy Manor, Ginny examined herself in a floor length mirror and smoothed down the plain silhouetted gold brocade dress (her mother proudly boasted that she made it from an old curtain of Aunt Muriel's). It was simple and sweet, and made Ginny feel rather pretty. She ran a hand over her hair, freshly curled into large waves, clipped back on one side with a small cream rose.

The door to the bathroom opened, and Tonks stepped out. Her dress was long, white, a lacy bustier on top with many full, lacy tiers below. It wasn't traditional in the least, but it was definitely a wedding dress.

"What do you think," Tonks asked, crinkling her nose in that adorable way Ginny wished she could imitate.

"It's amazing!"

"You don't think it's too much?" She spun around, the multi-color gems, sequins and stones shimmered. On anyone else it would have appeared gaudy but Tonks managed to make it look... fun.

"I think it's perfect. You look divine," Ginny answered, honestly.

"How should I do my hair?" Tonks running her fingers through her short, mousy brown hair, she tottered over to the mirror where Ginny had been admiring herself. Ginny grabbed a chair and let Tonks have a seat.

"Are you wearing a veil or something?"

"No, don't be silly, and cover this gorgeous mug?" She turned to Ginny, making a funny face at her. Ginny giggled.

"Doesn't Remus adore your natural hair?"

"Yes, he adores _everything_ about me, actually," Tonks said, crinkling her nose again, completely giddy.

"Are you nervous, at all?" Ginny asked, handing Tonks a hairbrush. Tonks ran it through her brown hair briskly, looking at Ginny in the mirror.

"No way! I bet he is, though," she said, making another funny face. She tossed the hairbrush onto the dresser, and shook out her hair. She conjured a peacock feather and pinned it to one side of her hair, above her ear.

"How's that, then?"

"Very nice."

"Could you hand that pouch there?"

Ginny leaned over to pick up a small case from the dresser. It was full of powders and brushes. It smelled wonderful.

"What's all this?"

"My makeup, I'm doing it the muggle way," she said, pulling a large brush out and playfully dotting Ginny on the nose with it.

"I've never seen that before," Ginny replied, watching her closely as Tonks applied a heavy layer of powder all over face with the large brush.

"I'll teach you sometime, it's really pretty easy."

"Actually, I wanted to ask you something."

Tonks picked up another smaller brush and began painting a pink shimmer over her cheeks.

"Sure, Gin. We can talk about anything."

"Erm, well... how did you...I mean, how did you know you loved Remus?

Tonks lowered her brush and turned to look at Ginny. She absently dabbed the brush into a small tin of powder. She slowly turned back to the mirror and resumed working on her cheeks.

"I knew it when he started holding my hand whenever we went up or down flights of stairs," she smiled at herself, putting away the rouge and rummaging through the make-up pouch. "I've always had the hugest crush on him, and he's always just been..." Her voice trailed off as she held a black pencil in front of her face, thinking.

"What?" Ginny prompted, watching as Tonks dragged the pencil across her eyelid.

"He was never very keen on the idea of us getting together," she finished. "I really had to push him. Pretty much forced him to admit his feelings for me." She grinned at Ginny in the mirror as she worked on her other eye.

"I didn't know that," Ginny said, wringing her hands together. "I thought that you were both so... perfect together."

"Yeah, we are. It's just it took him a long time to realize it. And to admit to himself that it was all worth it. He was worried because of his lycanthropy, which was a stupid reason not to get together."

Tonks' words shook Ginny. _That sounds awfully familiar_, she thought. Ginny dazedly watched Tonks slide a pink stick across her lips and put the finishing touches on her face.

When Tonks stood, Ginny quickly kicked the train of the white dress out of the way, before she could step on it.

"I think I'm ready, finally," Tonks said, beaming at Ginny.

"Ok. Should I find your father?"

"I got it," she said, picking her wand up off the dresser and swishing it sharply. Her father popped into the room with a tiny puff of smoke, the punch glass in his hand nearly sloshing onto his tuxedo.

"Oh, my," he exclaimed, "I'll never get used to that!"

"Daddykins," Tonks whispered, "Shall we?"

"I'd just like a minute alone," he said, ushering Ginny to the door.

"I'll just let everyone know we're about to start," Ginny said, shutting the door behind her.

In the cool, dimness of the hallway, she breathed out a heavy sigh. Tonks' words rolled around in her head, but she couldn't get herself to react to them.

* * *

Ginny found Narcissa standing in the large doorway to the rose garden. She was elegantly dressed in pale green dress robes, twirling a rose in her fingers, sniffing it delicately.

"Mrs. Malfoy?" Ginny said, approaching her slowly.

"Ah, Ginevra, hello. Please call me Narcissa!" she smiled, standing up straight. She wrapped an arm around Ginny and patted her on the back.

Without saying anything, Ginny pulled the small box from the pocket of her dress and held it out for her. Narcissa took it and nodded slowly. She tucked it away into her robes.

"The garden looks beautiful," Ginny said, hoping for a truce.

"Indeed," Narcissa answered, curtly, her lips forming a tight, cold smile.

Ginny stepped through the doorway and walked out to find her parents to tell them that Tonks was ready. She could feel Narcissa watching her go, her glare burning the back of her head.

* * *

Tonks had asked Ginny to stand by her, and insisted that her cousin stand by Remus. Ginny found herself avoiding looking in his direction the entire time. She swallowed heavily as she stared down at the bridal bouquet she was holding for Tonks.

Shacklebolt led the ceremony with his quiet, dignified voice. Ginny let his words wash over her, the vows of everlasting, enduring love that Tonks and Remus repeated. They finally turned toward the small audience and were announced man and wife. Tonks grabbed the bouquet and ran down the aisle with Remus in tow, laughing and waving.

Ginny turned to Draco, who held out his arm to escort her down the aisle after them. She hooked her arms under his and let him guide her slowly past her friends and family. She managed to force a tiny smile and wave at her parents. She noticed Draco nod to his mother.

* * *

The twinkling strings of light overhead made Ginny feel strange inside, the emptiness inside her churning, reminding her of her strange Daydream. She sat back in her chair and sipped punch from her cup. She caught sight of Ron and Hermione slow dancing, barely aware of their surroundings.

"May I have this dance?"

She looked up at the deep, velvety voice and the large hand held out for her. Snape was almost smiling, his black billowing robes were gone, replaced by a more current charcoal suit, his hair was tied back in a ponytail. Ginny just nodded and took his hand. He led her to the dance floor and circled around to bow slightly. She smiled nervously as they started moving slowly.

"I see the potion has had a side effect."

Ginny looked up at his from under her lashes, not daring to look at him directly.

"It's very subtle, but I've noticed."

"What? What have you noticed, exactly?" Ginny whispered, looking away, noticing Harry sitting by himself, glumly observing the small group of dancers.

"The potion worked in removing any trace of the Dark Lord, but it left a void in his place."

Ginny finally met his black eyes. He seemed to delve into her mind, reading the thoughts hidden there.

"It will be alright, in time," he continued, in his best attempt at being reassuring.

He bowed suddenly, and turned to his left, saying to the couple beside them, "May I cut in?"

It was Draco with Narcissa, and Draco stepped back to allow his godfather to dance with his mother. Snape spun off with Narcissa, and left Ginny and Draco standing alone and still.

Ginny was just about to turn around and find her chair in the corner, when he grabbed her wrist gently.

"Will you dance with me?"

She nodded. He pulled her closer to him, very slowly. She slipped arm around his waist, numbly pulling herself against him in a hug. He wrapped his hand around the nape of her neck, holding her head to his chest. They swayed, barely moving, just embracing each other. Though she could hear his heart pounding, she couldn't get herself to feel anything.

The music faded into the Celestina Warbeck song, "A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love."

Ginny felt Draco tense and stop moving altogether.

"Ginny," he started. "I wanted to tell you that I'm going to Paris with my mother, after all."

"Oh?"

"For a while," he answered. In a stiff, cold voice, he continued, "And I intend to find a bride while I'm there."

Ginny pulled away from him to glare at him.

"I thought you said you didn't want to marry," she shoved him in the chest, adding, "You said you didn't want to subject your wife to unfair prejudices."

He didn't say anything, he just let her go. They stood staring at each other, other dancers started to watch. Unable to cope with the news or the stares, Ginny spun around and stomped away.

She didn't stop stomping until she found herself far from the rose garden, almost to the practice field, where the three hoops loomed in the dark night.

Her chest heaved as she breathed heavily, angrily. She was distantly aware that the pain in her chest was the first emotion she'd felt since she drank the potion. It was a dizzy mix of anger, betrayal and despair.

Ginny heard slow, steady footfalls behind her. She dropped her head, hiding behind her hair.

"Why must you always storm off like that?"

"Leave me alone, Malfoy!"

"Just give me a chance to explain," he said, icily.

"Explain what?" she cried, "How you're such a confused mess that you don't even know what you want?"

"I'm not confused."

"Then what is it? You're too good for the likes of me?"

Draco looked away.

"That must be it. I'm too poor, too liberal with my muggle views, is that it? You don't want me because I'm a filthy blood traitor?" she screeched, aware that her voice was echoing around the field.

"I'm not beautiful enough? I'm not graceful enough?" she continued in a more normal voice.

"It's not any of those things," he whispered shakily.

"Tsk," she said, turning away from him. She crossed her arms and stared up at the hoops silhouetted against the stars.

"I don't want to hurt you," he finally said.

"It's too late for that."

"I don't...want to...ruin you."

She spun back toward him.

"There's nothing left here to ruin," she said, patting her chest. "If anything, I need something... to believe in. I need a reason to keep breathing, for fuck's sake."

"I just can't..."

"You're a coward, Malfoy! You always have been and you always will be! A fucking c -"

He crashed down on her, his lips just colliding hers with such force, she almost fell backward. He steadied her, grabbing her head in his large hands, moaning into her mouth.

Ginny's chest seemed to explode with light, color and sound. Something inside her blossomed until she was completely overwhelmed. She responded enthusiastically, pushing herself onto her tiptoes to deepen the kiss, winding her fingers through his hair.

He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him. Her mouth opened with a sigh and he took the opportunity to slide his tongue across her bottom lip. He exhaled shakily, dragging kisses across her mouth, over her cheek and her temple, and finally slowly pulled away.

He withdrew to look her in the eyes. The drugged look in his eyes turned mournful and dark. He fell to his knees in front of her, looking up on her with a glassy expression.

She took in his pained expression and realized what was happening. Sweat beaded on his forehead and he was cradling his left arm to his stomach.

"No! Not now!"

She dropped to her knees and grabbed his arm without thinking. She tore back the sleeve and stared at the red, writhing mark.

"Something has happened," he said, faintly.

She slapped her palm over the mark and watched his face slip in shock. The contact broke his restraint and his guard against the call dropped. They were both teleported straight to the Dark Lord's presence.

* * *

Author's Note:

I hope you all like the chapter! Please review, I love the feedback :-)


	23. Betrayal

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Three: Betrayal

* * *

Ginny's heart pounded painfully in her chest, overwhelmed with emotions. She gasped for breath, distantly aware that she was wandless and that she didn't know where they were. _He kissed me_, her mind screamed, _about bloody time_. She gripped Draco's arm tightly, as her eyes adjusted to the blinding dark.

"Stay back, Weasley."

"Don't call me Weasley," she snapped. She stumbled as he thrust her behind her, raising his lit wand to examine their surroundings.

Behind her, she heard a blood curdling laugh. She spun, her arms up to keep Draco back.

"Ah, little Ginevra. I _knew_ you'd return to me," Voldemort's voice called out to her from the pitch black. "And I see you've brought a gift!"

She heard others starting to apparate in. The darkness slowly lifted, until she was able to make out the ghastly figure of Lord Voldemort, in the middle of a ring of about twenty Death Eaters.

Draco tried moving past her, but she held him back.

"Come to me, Ginevra, and we shall see about -" He stopped mid-sentence, interrupted by a bright, fiery explosion. Ginny was momentarily blinded by the light, and as it dimmed she was able to see Harry standing between her and Voldemort. A cloud in the shape of a phoenix lifted above them.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort stated, as though introducing him to the crowd. More dark robed figures arrived and filled ranks among the circle.

She felt Draco tremble behind her, he rested one hand on the small of her back. Devising a plan for a diversion, she stepped forward to the Dark Lord. She felt Draco move with her, refusing to let her go.

"Tom," she said, walking past Harry without looking at him, "I _have_ come to offer my services to you. You were right about me, I could not resist." Draco grabbed her arm and tried yanking her back. He froze when she wrenched her arm from him, shooting him a glare, and slowly backed her way toward Voldemort's side. He looked betrayed, more so than Harry.

Voldemort raised his wand, and a dome flashed around them, encircling him, Ginny and Draco, stranding Harry and the other Death Eaters out. There were more flashes of brilliant light, announcing the arrival of Order members, and all hell broke loose.

* * *

Harry was pounding his fist on the dome, his yells silenced by the powerful magic encapsulating them. All around him, Death Eaters and Order members were throwing hexes at each other, dueling and battling, a mess of bodies and spells.

Ginny refused to look at Draco, who was standing at the edge of the dome, very near Harry. Instead, she turned away to look at Voldemort. He gazed down at her, his horrid face looking rather pleased. His grin slowly faded into a frown, as he examined her.

He turned to Draco and said, "You know, young Malfoy, when I first met Ginevra Weasley, I was taken aback by the latent darkness that lurked inside her mind. Yes, she startled me, with her fears and desires, hungering for things she could never have."

"Why are you speaking to him? He's nothing, he's nobody!" Ginny said, trying to draw his attention back to her, and at the same time, trying to stop him from telling Draco too much about her.

He circled her, continuing, "It took a lot of work and guidance to direct her darkness for a greater purpose, to concentrate her powers on achieving our goals, protecting wizard values."

"She was just a small girl, but she was just what I needed at the time. A strong willed soul," as he said this, he caressed Ginny's cheek with a long, spindly white finger. She swallowed back a scream. She could see Harry silently roar, raising his wand to uselessly hex the magic dome.

"Something is different about my little Ginevra. And I believe you are the one who ruined her, Malfoy."

Draco stood speechless. Ginny took a step back, her mind racing, struggling to form some semblance of a plan. Trying to sound natural, she said, "I'm not sure what you mean."

"You're missing something valuable. Something I planted within you. It laid dormant for so long, it became a part of you. And this pathetic excuse -"

"I'm not entirely free of you," she lied, slowly edging back. "I could never be free of you, you know that. What he's done, it's nothing, nothing that can't be undone."

"I'm afraid not, little Ginevra, it's not so simple. You are missing the one thing that made you mine, you're missing the thing that completed me. You've filled yourself with something vile, something...detestable."

He didn't finish his thought, but Ginny understood. The kiss with Draco filled her with an overwhelming sense of love. It filled the void with something clean and pure, leaving her completely free of Voldemort.

"Well, it's rather a waste. But I suppose I won't be needing either of you any longer."

Voldemort raised his wand, pointing it at Ginny. Her heart stopped in her chest, as she realized her last words to Draco were utterly horrible and she'd never told him she loved him.

The Dark Lord grinned cruelly as he slowly changed his aim, directing his wand at Draco.

"No!" Ginny cried, running toward Draco.

He flicked his wand, shooting a curse silently. She leapt in front of Draco, absorbing the spell, and falling back against him. An odd sense of numbness passed through her body and she passed out.

* * *

Author's Note: Sorry that was so brief. I wanted to mark the battle as an independent chapter. I have more already in the works and ready to post soon!

I love feedback, please let me know what you think!


	24. Tea

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Four: Tea

* * *

Ginny was awake before she opened her eyes. Her first thought was of Draco. She tried to call his name, but found her dry lips couldn't quite move.

There were distant sounds of people rushing about, people talking in hushed, excited voices.

She opened her eyes slowly to find that she was in a hospital room. Her mother was bustling about the room, straightening cards on the side table and rearranging flower vases.

Ginny scanned the room to see that Ron and Hermione were hunched together on a small cot in the corner, softly whispering and smiling secretly.

It was over and she was still alive. _Oh, no, _she thought, her stomach turning as she heard her own horrible words echoing in her ears. _How will I ever face Draco?_

Her mother approached her bed with an extra blanket and noticed that Ginny's eyes were open.

"Oh, she's awake, thank Merlin!"

Ron and Hermione jumped to their feet and came to her side. Hermione took Ginny's hand and grinned.

"It's over, Harry did it!"

Ginny sat up and forced a smile. She uncomfortably cleared her throat to ask, "Where's Draco?"

* * *

"I cannot begin to describe how incredibly disappointed I am with you," Harry said, sternly.

"I'm sorry - "

"No, I need you to let me finish." He was pacing her hospital room. Harry had driven out her family to speak to her alone. "What you did, it could have cost us the entire war. You should not have been there, at all, much less..."

He shoved his hand through his hair, frustrated.

"The damage you could have done, Ginny, it could have been catastrophic. What if he'd believed you? What if he'd killed you? I would have been incapacitated...I would have been..."

She stayed silent, clasping her hands on her neatly folded sheets. She sank into her pillows, deflating at Harry's furious tone.

"And those things you said..."

"Wait, you could hear us?"

"No," he said, looking away, "_Draco_ told me what happened."

She remained silent. She'd been in the hospital for three days, and he hadn't come to visit once. Narcissa sent her a beautiful bouquet of enchanted roses, but there was no message besides "thank you."

She didn't know what she would say to Draco, even if he'd come. She deluded herself into believing that if she could avoid him, she could avoid the long talk they would eventually have to have about what Voldemort had been saying about her. He probably felt the same way.

"I'm afraid the lasting damage you've caused is on yourself. Malfoy believed every word you said, that poor stupid sod. I didn't, of course, because I'm not a completely lovesick, daft git. Obviously you had some pathetically thought out plan. Distract Voldemort? Long enough for what? Til he got bored and killed you?"

Ginny shivered in her bed. "Can't we just be glad that it worked out and be done with it?"

"That spell was intended for Draco!"

"I know!"

"It was meant to suck out his soul, strengthening Voldemort's powers. And you took the hit!"

"I did..."

"Why would you do something so incredibly...aggghhh!" Harry groaned, turning away from her. "That spell hit you and somehow reflected onto Voldemort. It didn't affect him nearly as much as it did you, but it was enough to drop his shield. He was dazed long enough for me to...finish things."

"So why are you so upset? If Draco had taken the hit, we'd have been in more trouble! Instead of yelling at me, you should be thanking me," Ginny said, aware that she'd be testing Harry's temper with that sentiment.

"Yes, thank you, Ginny, for nearly ruining an entire year's worth of planning, for almost making all our efforts worthless. I broke that last Horcrux after the wedding, when I knew everyone would be distracted, be off guard... it was my chance to go at it alone, and you just had to ruin that for me!"

Ginny pouted, "I didn't ruin it on purpose! Voldemort knew, he must have sensed something when you broke that orb, that's why he called for his Death Eaters, he knew you were up to something. Draco got the summon..." Her voice trailed off, remembering the terrifying moment when his face slipped from ecstasy to agony.

She whispered, "I don't understand how I survived."

"In my experience, the one thing that protected you from Voldemort was love."

Ginny blushed, glad that her parents and other brothers were forced to get some tea. She looked down at her lap.

"It's been three days. He never came to see me? Not once?"

"I'm afraid not, Ginny. He's rather upset with you as well," Harry whispered. "Maybe more so than me. He may not have _really_ believed those things you said, but you hurt him deep down." He seemed to have finally cooled down. He sat in the chair beside her bed and took off his glasses to rub his eyes. "You'll need to talk with him, sort it all out, and set things right."

"But he left for Paris yesterday, with his mother," he continued. His words echoed in Ginny's ears, her stomach wrenching at the memory of Draco planning to choose a bride there.

"I guess I can write to see how he's doing," she said, trying to blink away any tears.

"He'll be back soon enough, he has Auror training with me starting in two weeks."

"Oh. You were both accepted?"

"Of course, how could we not be?"

Ginny smiled, shyly, comforted with the fact that she'd soon get to explain herself to Draco and convince him to forgive her.

* * *

"It's these ridiculous Auror training exercises, there's always someone hurt," said Healer Briana, exasperated. She flipped through a chart, magically marking things with her wand. She thrust the paperwork to Ginny, "I know you're a fresh student, but I think you can handle this. Head in there and take care of it, I've got instructions all ready for you."

"Are you sure -"

"Go on! He's in room 12."

Ginny quickly scanned the directions. They were rather straight forward. It was a very simple case, a laceration from a rough training regiment, just needed a patch-up. She was already through the door of the examination room, when she stopped dead in her tracks, seeing the patient's name at the top of the file.

She looked up to see Draco Malfoy, a face she hadn't seen in over a month. He looked gaunt and tired, his shirt sleeve folded up revealing a long cut. She was about to duck back out of the room, but it was too late. He saw her, his sharp-featured handsome face forming into an icy mask.

"Weasley," he said, standing up. He roughly pulled the sleeve down and buttoned the cuff, not caring that blood from his wound was seeping through the white fabric. "I should just go, it's really nothing more than a scratch."

"Um..." she was stunned to find herself speechless. She'd practiced what she'd say to him over a thousand times. It was the last thing she thought about every night before bed. She'd written him letters which he never replied to. She'd even gone to the Manor once and paced outside the gates for an hour before leaving.

He tentatively strode toward the door, trying to inch around her.

"Hello," she said, inwardly smacking herself for her awkwardly trite approach. "Just have a seat, I'll have you patched up and out of here in no time," she said, gesturing back toward the bed. "Your file says you won't have clearance to return to training until that's healed properly."

He stiffened at her words and marched back to the bed and sat down. She set down the paperwork, her hands shakily furiously. She resisted the urge to just run to him, hug him, kiss him, beg him to forgive her.

Ginny arranged a tray with the prescribed salve and bandaging. She carried it to the bedside, nearly tripping over her feet. She steadied herself, trying to calm her galloping heart, and set down the tray. She held out her hand and waited patiently as he slowly put his forearm forward.

She set to work, her hands moving mechanically, slowly and fumbling nervously.

"You never wrote me back," she whispered, looking up at his averted gray eyes.

"I had nothing to say."

"You never came to check on me."

"I didn't want to see you."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, tears starting to blur her vision.

He didn't respond. She'd finished her mending all too quickly, and she slowly pulled her hands away. He stood abruptly, waving his wand over his bloody sleeve to clean it.

"If that's all..." he said, turning toward the door. Ginny had a lurching feeling in her stomach that she wouldn't see him again for a very long time, if ever.

"I love you," she said to his back, the words just spilling out. "I never got to tell you. I was afraid I was going to die without saying it."

He ducked his head down and didn't turn to face her.

"I don't know if you feel the same way anymore, but it was your love that saved me, it was that kiss. It filled me with everything that could protect me from Voldemort."

Draco spun around, his face twisted up in rage. "Stop lying! I _can't_ believe you," he hissed. "I still _cannot_ believe what you did that night. I swore to myself that if I ever did see you again, I'd kill you myself."

His words hit her like a blow to the stomach. She took a step back, wrapping her arms around her waist.

"You never gave me the chance to explain," she said, scowling. "I saved your life and you didn't even come to see if I was alright!"

"I couldn't bear to see your vile face! I don't know what disgusts me more – the fact that you selfishly took a spell meant for me or the fact that you think I should appreciate that you did."

Ginny's shoulders slumped. "I hate fighting with you."

"Then just let me leave, for God's sake," he said, crossing his arms across his chest, but standing perfectly still.

"Can you come out for tea with me later? Please?"

* * *

Ginny fumbled with the sugar cubes, wincing as the hot tea sloshed over the brim on her cup, leaving a wet stain on the tablecloth. She slid her saucer over to hide the spot.

She looked up to see that Draco was gazing past her shoulder at the door. She followed his gaze to see Pansy Parkinson entering the small tea shop. Ginny shifted uncomfortably, unsure whether she'd notice them or approach them.

Surprisingly, Draco stood without a word to her, and met Pansy at the counter. He took her hand in his and shook it gently, leaning in close to whisper something in her ear. Ginny felt her face heat at the demure way Pansy looked up at him, nodded and whispered back.

Ginny's heart sank as she watched Draco lead Pansy to a small table at the opposite corner of the small room. He pulled out her seat for her as she sat, but didn't join her. He leaned over her to continue their short conversation. Ginny sipped her hot tea, noticing Pansy look up to meet her eyes. Ginny blushed and looked away, fixing her stare on Draco's empty chair across from her.

She swirled the remainder of her tea in her cup, absently, realizing how foolish she'd been for suggesting a public place. _Well, I couldn't very well take him to the Burrow. Mum and Dad would have had a field day with him._

He slumped back into his seat, pulling his napkin back onto his lap. He primly stirred his tea and took a sip, without saying a word.

Almost a minute passed, before Ginny, knowing that her time with him was fleeting, drew up the courage to break the silence.

"How's Auror training? That going well?"

"I'm sure you've had updates from Potter."

Ginny blushed, not wanting to admit that she asked after Draco every time she spoke to Harry.

"How was Paris?"

"It was beautiful. My mother loves it there."

"Is she still furious with me?"

"Why would she be?" Draco asked, for the first time, truly engaged in the conversation.

"I gave her back the ring. It wasn't right for me to keep it. She wasn't very happy about that."

Draco didn't say anything, just drank his tea quietly.

Ginny's mind raced, trying to think of more things to say, before he could make an excuse and leave.

"I've missed you."

"Yes, you say as much in all of your letters."

"So you've been reading them? Just not bothering to reply?"

"I'm sorry," he sighed, "Yes, I suppose I should have written, at least once to just say 'Shove off.'"

Ginny smiled at him. "So then you also know that I'm very, very sorry..."

"Yes, but for what, I wonder? For using me to get into that Death Eater meeting? For mistaking 'love' for something you can manipulate to your own purposes? For nearly ruining all of the war efforts against Voldemort, by offering to hand him Potter on a silver platter? Or for lying to me about who you really are...deep down?"

She looked away. Out of the corner of her eyes, she caught Pansy watching them. "I thought you were going to leave me there in that field. I didn't want that to be the last time I ever saw you, and I didn't know what I could even do about it. I grabbed your arm," Ginny said, gesturing to his left forearm, "Praying that either I'd keep you from going or I'd go with you."

"That was incredibly daft -"

"I know! I've gotten that speech, about 10 times now, and that's counting Fred and George separately. I couldn't tell anyone else, but honestly, I may not have been thinking clearly..." she blushed, hoping he'd get her drift. He did, and a light flush of pink colored his cheeks.

"And when we were there, in the cold, in the dark, I didn't know what would happen. I just knew one thing, that I was _not_ going to lose you. And in a deranged, pathetic way, I thought I could protect you by..."

"By what? Betraying me? Betraying everyone?"

"Did Harry tell you about...my last...encounter with Voldemort?"

"You mean, in the Chamber of Secrets?"

"No, before I took the potion. He arranged a meeting with me, in my mind. He wanted me to join him, and in exchange he offered me...you. It horrified me to know that he still understood me – he knew what I wanted more than anything. He knew I'd...even consider the offer."

Draco sat speechless across from her. Their tea cooled, totally forgotten.

"When we were there, in his presence – he was saying those things about me, I don't know, something snapped inside me, and I thought...I thought..." She felt her eyes unfocus as she blinked slowly. For a moment, all she could see in front of her was Voldemort's red eyes penetrating into her.

She felt Draco's strong, warm hand clamp onto her wrist, it brought her crashing back to reality.

He dragged her to her feet and pulled her out of the small shop. The cool air hit her face, stinging the tears welling up in her eyes. He tucked her under his arm and whirled around, waving his wand.

* * *

Ginny paced by the fire in the Malfoy Manor library, collecting her thoughts. She stopped mid step and turned to Draco, who was seated in an armchair.

"Did you get married?"

"What?"

"It's just...you went to Paris..."

"No!"

"I just remembered, you saying... and I thought since you really...hate...me now, there'd be nothing to stop-"

"No."

"Oh."

She paced some more.

"What were you saying to Pansy?"

"Are you ever going to get to the point?"

"Is she your girlfriend now?"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, no – she's not my girlfriend. And before you ask, I don't have a girlfriend at all."

Ginny just nodded. She turned to pace again, and he continued, "She's one of my oldest friends. She lost her parents in the battle that night, and she's worried sick that she's going to pay her whole life for their sins."

"That's terrible!" Ginny said.

"Well, that's the reality. There was amnesty for unmarked relatives of Death Eaters. She's protected by the law, but not quite accepted back into society." He looked down at his lap, continuing, "Actually, she was rather crushed that I left her to be with you."

Ginny noted the slightly teasing tone in his voice and found herself able to relax. She sat down across from him.

"Before you start yammering again with your rather repetitive apologies, I just want to say three things to you," he said, holding up his hand to silence her indignant response.

"First – I don't think I can ever forgive you for thinking I'm a coward. I'm realistic, I'm able to see the bigger picture, and I'm not a fool. That doesn't make me a coward – it makes me aware. I'm aware that you're too good for the likes of me, not the other way around. I'm aware that being with someone like me would be a burden too heavy for anyone to bear. And I'm aware that I should not have avoided you for so long – it only seemed to have emboldened you.

"Second – I'm training to be an Auror, so that I can protect myself and others. I can fight my own battles, I don't need you protecting me, or taking spells for me – I can handle myself fine.

"Third – I love you, too -"

Not bothering to hear any more, Ginny launched herself at him, throwing herself onto his lap, her arms tightly around his shoulders, her face buried into his neck.

* * *

Author's Note:

Please review, I love getting feedback!


	25. Drinks

**Something To Believe**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Five: Drinks

* * *

Ginny nearly giggled. _He was shy. How sweet. _

She was in his lap, her fingers twined roughly into his silky locks. He was blushing hotly and refusing to kiss her, making her brush ler lips over his burning cheek in futility.

"Some boyfriend," she said. He rolled his eyes and shifted uncomfortably, lightly pushing her off.

She took the queue and flopped into the armchair opposite him. _ Better view_, she thought.

"I...I've had feelings for you for the longest time."

"Well when I saw this," she answered, pulling the crumpled note, riddled with her name, from her pocket. He waved that away, swallowing, trying to form words, despite his embarrassment.

"No, I mean, for a _long_ time. Since school," he said. "Since I first laid eyes on you, possibly."

"Oh, I didn't think you even knew my name." Now she was blushing.

"Well, no, actually, I didn't really. But I knew who you were, I..." He trailed off, turning to the fireplace. "Just fancied you, nothing more. I knew it could never be anything more."

"Why not - because you were such a snot to my brother?"

He grinned at her, "God, it was fun being a snot."

She rolled her eyes. "I had no idea, you never..."

"I couldn't very well come out and say it. You'd have hexed me into next century. Besides you only had eyes for Potter for the longest time. But I sent you a flower once, in your 5th year," he stood from his chair to kneel at the hearth rug.

"The day after my birthday! That was from you?" She remembered the pretty pink peony that arrived during breakfast, with no note or card.

"And there was one Quidditch match, you were playing against Ravenclaw - after you caught the snitch, I nearly ran to you, I wanted..." He trailed off, turning to face the fire.

She joined him on the rug. This felt familiar, a different rug maybe, the two of them were the same. She reached out and took his hand. He was hesitant but he didn't pull away. His palm was cold, sweaty - _he was nervous_.

"Why didn't you tell me these things earlier? At Grimmauld Place?"

"What, and encourage you? Besides, I...You know, I don't even know why I'm telling you all this. I'm still furious with you."

"Are you really?" she cocked her head, hoping her well-practiced "I'm innocent, I swear" look worked on him.

"Yes," he said, licking his lips. He ran his hands over his face and roughly through his hair. "I'm not ready to just move forward. The feelings you somehow elicit in me - I - I don't entirely like it."

She drew herself up onto her knees and inched closer. She looked down at him, relishing in the way he tilted his head back to look her in the eyes.

"What are you so afraid of, Draco?"

"All this time, I was worried I'd break your heart," he gasped, his hot breath blowing back wisps of her red hair. "But I should have been worrying you'd break mine."

She flinched, burned by his words. Her brow furrowed as she slowly lowered herself away from him. "I wouldn't," she said, cringing at the whine in her voice.

"You already did, who's to say you won't do it again."

"Give us a chance."

"I'll think about it. For now," he stood, brushing himself off. "You should go. I"ll call on you soon."

* * *

She lay in her bed at the Burrow, bouncing a mini-quaffle off the ceiling and catching it single-handed. She had been spending most of her evenings this way, thinking. Now she had much to ruminate on.

_He'd fancied her. Since school? _

She replayed every moment of her academic career, analyzing every encounter she'd had with Draco.

There was a time in the library where she'd asked to borrow a quill, he'd looked up at her like she was a ghost. At the time she'd dismissed the look to him feeling like he was being mugged...

Once in Hogsmeade, she'd come up short at the counter, trying to buy her first lip gloss - but he'd sidled up beside her and pressed a galleon into her palm claiming he saw her drop it. She _knew_ she hadn't, she'd never even _held_ a galleon before that day...

She rewound further to the memory of her first interaction with Draco, in the bookstore so many years ago. She frowned thinking of Tom Riddle's diary slipping in her cauldron, pausing her arm to rest the quaffle on her chest. She was _free_. Thanks to _him_.

They were never going to get it together. They were never BOTH going to be on the same page. She imagined he was lying in his bed at the same moment, burning up inside. The way she was.

* * *

"Ginny, I heard you ran into Malfoy the other day," Harry said, shoveling a forkful of food into his mouth. The Weasleys all dined together at the Burrow, once a fortnight, and this included Harry and Hermione. Attendance was mandatory, and absentees suffered the wrath of Mrs. Weasley. She'd been pushing Harry to bring Draco along, but to no avail.

"Erm, did he talk to you about me?" she asked across the table, acutely aware her whole family had paused mid-chew to hear.

"No, he hardly speaks at all lately. Actually, I heard from Pansy." Everyone's fork clattered to their plates.

"Pansy?"

"Pansy PARKINSON?"

"What were you doing with Pansy?"

"Who's Pansy?"

Harry grinned, mischievously, at their questions and took another large bite.

"I took her out to lunch yesterday, she works as a Ministry liaison at Gringott's."

Again, a flood of questions.

"Oh just a business lunch?"

"Does she work with you, Bill?"

"A lunch _date_?"

"Who's Pansy?"

"I did see Draco," Ginny said, not bothering to be heard over the others. "He came into the clinic about a week ago, we went out for tea afterwards - that's where he ran into Pansy."

"Did you invite him to dinner, dear?" Molly said, "You should have invited him - "

"Mum, he's not...I don't think he wants that right now," Ginny replied, blushing into her half-eaten plate. Her appetite was gone, all she could picture was eating intimate meals with Draco back at Headquarters.

"He asked me to give his apologies, Molly, he said he will try to come next time," Harry said, dutifully. He caught Ginny's eye and shrugged his shoulders.

"He must be so lonely out there, he's living in that giant house all by himself, I hear. Andromeda and Tonks get to visit him," she sniffed. "But they never invite me along," she muttered into her wineglass.

"Pansy thinks the four of us should get together sometime, Ginny, for drinks or something," Harry said.

"I'd like that. Maybe she can be the one to invite Draco?"

"She can handle that, I think," he said, nodding. He realized the whole table was listening, and that Hermione looked hurt. "You and Ron should join us, for sure," Harry added awkwardly. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"So how is Pansy faring these days," Ginny asked, smirking at Harry. "Better now, I imagine, that she's making some _friends_." Harry's smile made his eyes crinkle at the corners behind his glasses. It warmed her heart.

"Seriously, who is Pansy?" Fred cried out, exasperatedly, slamming his drink on the table. George leaned over and whispered in his ear. "Oooooh, her! Yeah... Nice one, Harry!" Fred exclaimed, waggling his eyebrows.

* * *

"I was NEVER that small," Harry said, nodding at the group of 4th year boys near the door. They were in the Hogs Head tavern, it was the first Hogsmeade day for Hogwarts students.

"You were, I remember," Pansy said, fidgeting with her cocktail napkin. She took a long pull from a steaming concoction in a pewter mug. "We all were."

Draco drawled, "Little Weasley's STILL smaller than most of them."

"Stop calling me that," she hissed under her breath, while Pansy and Harry laughed.

The 4th year boys were now bickering with another group of boys over a table. It happened to be nearest a large group of girls.

"Oh, and of course, the animosity between houses lives on," Harry snickered. "Tame though, in comparison, eh, Draco?"

Draco arched an eyebrow as he purveyed the argument across the room. Two giggling girls passed the boys and their dispute was forgotten. One boy playfully punched another on the arm and they all scrambled to sit down at the table together.

"Some things never change," Pansy remarked. She swept her sharp-cut black bangs out of her eyes. "I only had one boyfriend through school, and to be honest, he was rubbish."

"Har, har," Draco scowled. "You didn't have honest feelings for me. You were only interested in one thing."

Ginny choked on her drink. Harry slapped her on her back, laughing.

"Power, I was going to say power," Draco blushed. "Shut up," he added under his breath.

Pansy leaned across the table, narrowing her hazel eyes. "I know you fancied someone else, you were always so distant." Her lips curved up in a devious smile. "Who was it, Draco?"

He stared into his bubbling beer for a long moment and then said, solemnly, "Your mother." Pansy stuck her tongue out at him.

* * *

They talked there for hours, and eventually watched the Hogwarts students bundle up and shuffle out, elbowing each other and hollering all the way through the door.

"We need refills," Harry said, standing. "Care to help me, Pansy?" The two of them wove their way across the less crowded pub to the bar.

Ginny turned her full attention to Draco, noting the delicate pink across his cheeks.

"So how _is_ your training coming along? Harry tells me you're exceptional at deception and inscrutability," Ginny said, trying to take a pull of her drink, now mostly ice. Harry had insisted she refrain from alcohol or he'd never hear the end of it from Molly.

"I'm well practiced at keeping a straight face. Having lived with you," he drawled. "And if you can say 'incrut-inscoo-inscruta-bill-ity' right now, you need a stronger drink," he said, himself knocking back the rest of his firewhiskey.

Ginny giggled, blushing as she thought about the effect firewhiskey has on Draco. Makes his eyes shiny and his cheeks flush.

"You're impossible to read," Ginny said, "There are times I wish I could tell what you were thinking. I wish I knew what you wanted."

"What I want is simple, no need for mind-reading - Oh...oh! Oh my god," he interrupted himself. "Oh my god," he pointed at her face jerkily, his hand still clutching his empty glass. "You're not 17 yet!"

"Yeah, you know my birthday's in fall. So?" Ginny said, cocking her head.

"Let me see, today is...one, two, no, three weeks?" he was muttering to himself, looking at his wristwatch.

Three weeks - she did the math quickly. She'd be 17 in a mere three weeks. Maybe then she'd start getting the respect she deserves. Maybe then she'd get more responsibility and less babysitting. She doubted it, her mum would consider her a child even when Ginny had babies of her own.

Harry and Pansy returned.

"Pansy and I were going to get some dinner," Harry said, setting down only two drinks. One was a butterbeer with ice, the other another finger of firewhiskey. He was very clearly NOT inviting them along. Ginny took the hint and stood to hug him and Pansy goodnight.

"It was wonderful spending some time with you, Ginny," the pretty black-haired girl murmured, "I've heard so much about you...from everyone." Pansy leaned over to wrap her arm around Draco's shoulders in a quick hug. He rolled his eyes, but patted her on the back.

"Bye, love," Draco called. Ginny's fist clenched as she sat back down. _He never called me 'love'_, she thought, sulkily. _He only calls me "Little Weasley" now._ She hated it.

"See you, then," Harry said, shrugging on his coat and ushering Pansy out.

As soon as the door shut behind them, Ginny reached across the table and grabbed the firewhiskey glass. With reaction time faster than she'd expected, Draco's hand snaked out and grabbed her wrist.

"Oh come on, there's hardly anyone around."

"Let's get out of here, too."

"Where'd you have in mind?"

* * *

The park was cold, and empty. She shivered, immersed in chilly fog. She stepped away from Draco, she's used his wand to apparate them both here. She didn't want to risk getting splinched because he couldn't hold his liquor.

"I love coming here," he said, grinning. His eyes were bright, his hair askew because he kept running his black-leather-gloved fingers through the strands.

"You come here often?" Ginny asked, confused, glancing down toward number 12. "Why?"

"Reminds me of you," he said, leaning into her, smiling.

"That's silly, you should just come straight to _me_," she replied, loving the carefree Draco with her now. She grabbed his lapels and pulled him down closer. She could feel the warmth of his breath on her face. _What would he do if I just kissed him, right now?_

"_I_ remind you of me, too, don't I?"

His face scrunched up in confusion. "You remind me of...yarn."

Ginny laughed. She led them to the bench under the lamppost. Draco sat heavily beside her. He wrapped his cloak carefully around the both of them.

"So, Draco..."

"Yes, hmm, what?" he said, distractedly. He was brushing hair back from her cheek. His gloved fingers were cold on her skin.

"What is it that you want? You said it was simple?"

There was a long pause, while he blankly stared at her hair. After a few moments, she shook her head, it would be impossible to get straight answers out of him in his current state.

He reached over and took her hand.

"Ask me again on your birthday."

* * *

Author's Note:

It's been so long...I guess I really wasn't done!

But you must remember what happens now right? You **_REVIEW_**! Please leave a comment, it encourages me to continue :) I have some ideas already formulated for the next chapter - shouldn't be YEARS til you hear from me again...

Also the little stories about Draco and Ginny at Hogwarts - I think I might flesh some of them out and incorporate them in a different story.


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